


The Game of Stealing Hearts

by Ha_YouWish



Category: Persona 5, Subarashiki Kono Sekai | The World Ends With You
Genre: A New Day??? who the fuck is that, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Asexual character(s), Canon-Typical Violence, Conductor Sakuraba Neku, Discussions of abuse, Gen, LGBTQ+ Characters(s), Multi, No Persona 5: The Royal Spoilers, No beta we die like neku, Spoilers for both games, game mechanics are like playdough. i will shape them into what i want., i guess this isnt going to follow the twewy sequel either lmao, rhyme deserves more screen time so i'm gonna give the people (me) what they want
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:15:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 37,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22653109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ha_YouWish/pseuds/Ha_YouWish
Summary: About a year or so after the Reaper’s Game, Neku enjoys his not-really-normal life as a student with his friends.However, when he suspects that the home life of his new friend, Yusuke Kitagawa, might be abusive situation, he’s pulled into a new world that both clashes and mixes with his own…A world where hearts can be stolen and lives can be saved because of it.
Relationships: Eri/Misaki Shiki, I dont feel like tagging all of them, Kiryu "Joshua" Yoshiya & Sakuraba Neku, Persona 5 Protagonist & Phantom Thieves of Hearts, Persona 5 Protagonist & Sakuraba Neku, Sakuraba Neku & Kitagawa Yusuke, Suzui Shiho/Takamaki Ann
Comments: 357
Kudos: 363
Collections: Quality Persona Fics





	1. “Belive I Will”

**Author's Note:**

  * For [fisticuffs_bee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fisticuffs_bee/gifts).
  * Inspired by [A Grim Reaper and a Trickster Walk Into a Bar [NEW]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26077570) by [fisticuffs_bee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fisticuffs_bee/pseuds/fisticuffs_bee). 



> hello! i’m here to take a crack at this idea bc it’s one that works so well and i like it a Lot. 
> 
> this ones for you bee <3, but i hope everyone who comes across it likes it! 
> 
> i’ll shut up now, here ya go!

Even when he’d been pulled from his own head, when the horizons of his world have been expanded, the vibrant life of Shibuya always finds a way to grab Neku’s attention. Maybe it’s because his tie to it is metaphorical as well as quite literal. 

The streets, filled with people and gossip, are alive all around him in ways that he wouldn’t have noticed before he entered the Reaper’s Game. People show off how good they are at following the latest trends in clothing, talking and laughing with friends. They walk to and from gruesome jobs or explore around as tourists. 

People watching is a good pastime for him. He stands just out of the rush of people, connected to the crowd, but distant enough not to have his senses overwhelmed. If he stands in the right places, it's almost like being in the UG, able to interact with the world in small ways from a distance. (Of course, he can just go to the UG directly, but there’s something slightly unique about each experience, so he does both.)

He doesn’t just stare for hours. He listens, hearing random chats go by. People complain about society. Politicians make speeches. Teens crack jokes with friends. He never used to listen, always tuning out the rest of the world. 

But really, he’s waiting. Waiting for what? Well, for—

“Neku!” He turns his head to see Shiki waving as she approaches his spot near the Hachiko statue. 

He waves back, smiling a little. These meetups with his friends decorate his life now. Life is bigger. Brighter. Shiki, Beat, Rhyme, and even Eri— who he’s _still_ getting used to— are the lights of his new life, despite how cheesy that seems. 

And then there’s Joshua, who’s a… friend, but that’s another messy issue entirely. Neku tries not to focus on that issue unless it’s actually in front of him. Instead he focuses on his schoolwork or anything else as a distraction. 

He goes to Kosei High School, the same school Shiki and Eri go to. It’s hard to get into and the academic work is top tier. 

At first, Neku had gotten in with his academics and artistic talent and had to keep his grades in order to keep the amount his family paid at a lower cost. But apparently this year some anonymous benefactor pays for his scholarship as long as he meets its (pretty odd) requirements. He decided that he would just go with it (even if he _does_ have some suspicions about who sponsors him).

Neku doesn’t share a class with Shiki or Eri, so he doesn’t know his classmates too well. Some of them make awkward forced small talk with him and seem nice, but some still treat him like they did before the Game. 

It’s his fault, too. As far as they know, he acted like an asshole and then suddenly changed into some entirely different person. After all that time he spent not listening to people, he finally uncovers his ears to rumors and whispers that he never realized were there. 

It kinda sucks.

But there’s still times he’s able to reach out to someone new. One of his classmates, Yusuke Kitagawa, always stays behind in the art room during lunch. 

Neku doesn’t really know that much about Yusuke, despite sitting next to him in class. He’s well known, being under _the_ _Madarame’s_ mentorship and all, but what he’s truly known for is being pretty weird (even though their class is full of _art students)._

Somehow, mentioning his classmate’s time alone in the art room to Shiki and Eri led to them convincing Neku to ask him to sit with them at lunch. 

The most surprising part? Yusuke actually agreed. 

For a while, hanging out with him was… awkward. At least for Neku, Yusuke probably doesn’t see _anything_ as awkward. 

But as he got to know him, he finds that it’s way more amusing to just go along with whatever. If there’s one thing Yusuke’s got, it’s passion (even if it’s to the point of being stubbornness), and Neku kinda admires that about him. The guy’s pretty weird, but not as weird as some people he’s met, so they’re cool. 

And with a friend in his class, it makes projects much, _much_ easier. 

“From now until the end of the year, you’ll be working with a partner of your choosing that has a style that clashes with your own,” Neku’s art teacher, Hayashi, announces one day. 

The class quickly dissolves into chatter, with many people asking others to be their partners. 

“Before you go on making any promises like lonely singles on Valentine’s Day,” they say, getting the attention of the room once again, “You’ll be making a series of pieces that reflect whatever major events you wish to depict that happen over the course of the time you’re given, personal events or not. Though we’ll all hear about the same events on the news, the goal is not to have yours be unique with the event itself, but the way you depict its effect on you.

“I know I said earlier that they were to _reflect_ the events, but think of it as less of your standard glass and more of a funhouse mirror. It’s different from different perspectives, but the point still comes across. 

“You can make as many pieces as you want, but more does not necessarily mean a better grade. Quality over quantity, everyone! They _must_ follow a consistent theme. A theme that shows in both the event topics and your style as well. With that in mind, choose your partner!”

Neku looks to Yusuke next to him, who’s deep in thought, and taps his shoulder. 

“Do you want to be partners?” he asks when Yusuke looks over. “It’s better to work with someone you know, right? Also I have a few ideas on what we could use as our theme.”

Yusuke takes a moment of consideration before nodding, “I look forward to hearing what ideas you have to offer.”

Neku hasn’t done a project with someone else in a while, but working with Yusuke doesn’t seem like it’ll be too difficult. Maybe. 

“Great,” he says, “Are you free to start after school today?”

Yusuke shakes his head, “I’m not free for today. I don't believe I will be for the rest of the week. I have to finish a piece before the start of Madarame-sensei’s upcoming exhibition this Sunday.”

Something in his wording makes Neku pause, it makes him suddenly focused, intent on paying complete attention to whatever the other boy might say. 

“Before then?” he asks slowly, “Why?”

“Ah, well…” Yusuke starts, but falters for a moment. “I help out with the exhibition and work on many projects at one time. If I finish this one it leaves time for the class project.”

Neku nods, saving this bit of info for later. The more he’s known Yusuke, the more he’s been able to tell the difference between his reasons and his excuses. There’s something a bit _off_ about Yusuke’s situation, but Neku doesn’t have nearly enough information to know what it is, let alone try and actually _do_ something about it. The only hints he gets are from everyday conversations and excuses he hears. 

“Speaking of the exhibition,” Yusuke continues, “Madarame-sensei has provided me with quite a few tickets in case I wanted to invite anyone. You can take others with you, if you’re interested.”

_Interested?_ Neku’s mood _very_ visibly lifts and brightens at the suggestion. Going to see art exhibitions is a luxury a student like him can’t really afford, this is an opportunity he _has_ to take. 

“Sure,” he says, his laid back tone definitely not matching his excited attitude. Yusuke hands him three tickets and Neku sends a quick text to the group chat, knowing someone will respond sooner or later. 

“I’ll definitely be there—” is all Neku is able to say before the class continues with Hayashi-sensei’s booming voice and draws both of their attention. He’ll talk with Yusuke later.


	2. "A Good One"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neku visits the art exhibit and sees some paintings, some of which he recognizes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello again! happy march, we've made it through the second month of 2020 bby. i'm actually having a lot of fun with this story, planning out all these interactions and stuff. look forward to them!
> 
> that's all, so, without further ado, let us continue this story......

The problem with waiting for something that you want to do is that time passes so goddamn slowly. Neku uses the time to really focus on his studies and hope that things move at least a little faster. 

Shiki and Rhyme are the only ones who could come along with him to the exhibit, Beat not being too interested and Eri being busy. But overall, Neku’s glad to have a chance to introduce Yusuke to Rhyme (they both seem like they’ll get along great).

When Sunday finally comes, he waits at Hachiko for the other two. Shibuya is crowded and crazy like always, but there’s still a flow to it that he tries to tune into, maybe it’ll calm down his impatience. 

He hadn’t really known what to wear to an art exhibit, especially one for a famous artist. Despite his best efforts, the habit of planning his outfit has been successfully drilled into his head by Shiki and Eri. Though per usual, he had just decided to do something casual. But with time to think, he’s started to doubt the outfit he’s wearing. 

_ Come on, where are they? _ He thinks, eyes glancing through the crowd for his friends. Finally he spots familiar brown hair and a beanie right beside it and calls out to the both of them. 

At his voice, Rhyme turns towards him, grabbing Shiki’s hand and dragging her along as they skip over. 

“Are we too late?” Rhyme asks.

“Nah,” Neku shrugs. He glances anxiously at the time on his phone, a habit left over from the Game. “I was just too early.”

“Wow, Neku! I’m surprised you dressed up today,” Shiki teases. 

Neku rolls his eyes, absently playing with his hair and starting to walk, “Can we just get going already?”

“Huh,” Rhyme says, studying his outfit. They put a hand to their chin like a dignified critic in deep thought for a moment, before dropping the act entirely with a shrug. “’s just a jacket, I don’t see anything different.”

“I guess it’d look like that to most, but look. For one thing, he made an effort to put his hair in a neat ponytail instead of messy. Not to mention,” Shiki snatches Neku’s hand, ignoring any of his half-hearted protests. She turns his hand over, pointing to his dark blue nails. “He painted his nails! I only see him do that when he wants to dress up a little.”

Neku rests his forehead in his free hand, feeling slightly betrayed and very embarrassed. Rhyme’s curious smile gets even wider, much to his surprise, “You can paint nails? Are you good at it? Can you teach me?”

Neku shrugs, pulling his hand back and looking away. Shiki was  _ not _ supposed to share that information about his hobby, but he finds that he doesn’t really mind, since it’s Rhyme. “Uh, sure, anytime. But first, let’s not be late to the exhibit.”

When they get there, it’s wall-to-wall  _ crowded. _ The only thing stopping Neku from hopping into the UG to get past all these people is the fact that Shiki and Rhyme are with him. 

Rhyme, the expert at getting through crowds they are, grabs Shiki’s hand and Shiki grabs his. Even though they do this all the time, Neku’s still not very fond of getting yanked around through a bunch of people that are way too close. 

Once he sees the familiar sight of the back of Yusuke’s head, he takes the lead. He finds his classmate standing next to a blonde girl around his age. 

“Oh, you’re here! I’m very glad you could make it,” Yusuke says as they approach.

“Thanks for the invites,” Shiki says, taking in a few of the pieces on display. 

“Oh! I think I know you,” Rhyme exclaims in realization while turning to the blonde girl, “You’re Ann Takamaki, right? You go to Shujin too.”

She nods, “Yeah, I think I’ve seen you around. Beat’s your older brother, right?”

“That’s him,” they nod.

“Takamaki is the model for my next art piece,” Yusuke explains. “I invited her here to see Madarame-sensei’s work as well.”

“I’m still just considering the modelling thing, actually,” she adds. 

Neku nods, knowing Yusuke’s tendency to assume things. “Nice to meet you, I’m Neku Sakuraba and this is Shiki Misaki. We both go to Kosei with him.” 

She smiles politely, “Nice to meet you, too.”

Rhyme grabs Shiki’s hand, “I think I see the painting I was talking about earlier, let’s go check it out. Do you want to come with us Neku?”

Neku shakes his head, noticing how quiet Shiki has gotten. She’s always a bit more shy around strangers. Her attitude during the Game had not been very close to her true self, but Neku has always tried to be quick to understand. “Nah, I think I’ll stick with Yusuke for a tour.” He turns to Yusuke, “I mean, if you’re up to it?” 

“Of course,” Yusuke nods, making a broad gesture towards some of the pieces hanging up, “I know much about Sensei’s artwork, I can show you around.”

Neku waves as Rhyme and Shiki leave, turning in time to see Takamaki step up to a piece that caught her eye. 

“Oh, this is it— the painting I wanted to see in person.”

For just a brief moment, a shadow of a frown passes over Yusuke’s face, before being replaced with cold indifference. “…This one?” his voice and steps are hesitant as he moves toward it.

Neku walks over with him, watching Yusuke’s face carefully. “What about this one did you want to see so badly?” he asks Takamaki.

She puts a hand on the side of her chin, tapping in a rhythm on her jaw as she thinks. “I guess it’s the painter’s anger? I’m not sure, but I sense this… strong frustration from it.” 

He turns away from Yusuke, studying the piece. It’s high quality, like would expect of such a famous artist. But there’s something familiar about it, like he’s seen something similar to it before. 

Anyways, he can see what she’s getting at. Some strokes seem almost rushed, pressed hard onto the canvas with force, all of it conveying great anger at something or someone. 

“To think such a cheerful and gentlemanly person could make such a piece…” Ann sighs. 

That’s when it clicks for him. Of freaking  _ course _ Neku’s seen this art style before, it’s  _ Yusuke’s _ . The more familiar parts are somewhat covered up to look different, but he can see it slip back to what he’s used to here and there. A glance up to Yusuke’s face tells it all, a solemn look almost completely hidden. 

_ But why would Yusuke’s art be here? It’s not even under his own name.  _

“Something wrong?” Takamaki asks glancing between the two of them. 

_ Is it to give some attention to his pupils? No, then Yusuke would have been credited.  _

“Don’t mind me,” Yusuke assures, “There are better pieces than… this one. Come now, this way.”

_ Is he just straight up stealing Yusuke’s artwork? Why would such a famous artist do that? What the hell— _

“Neku?”

He’s broken out of his thoughts, apologizing for getting so caught up. They continue going around and looking at the various pieces. But Neku can’t help thinking back to Yusuke’s piece. He’s never seen him angry before, but he knows he’s not as oblivious as most make him out to be.

Neku makes a silent note to himself to look into this whole thing later.  _ When did I get so nosy? Shiki and Eri must be rubbing off on me.  _

The three of them meet up with Shiki and Rhyme again at another painting. They end up deciding to just look around together. Like he thought, Rhyme and Yusuke get along almost too well.

Shiki and Takamaki start talking about fashion after Shiki made a comment about wanting to use one of the pieces she saw as a pattern. Both of them are so caught up pointing out which paintings would make good designs that Neku decides that it’s better to listen to Rhyme’s conversation with Yusuke. 

“I like how the flowers on this face away from you, and how the tree’s shadow hangs just a bit too far. The whole thing is something very beautiful, but it hides something very dark,” Rhyme says. 

“A very keen observation,” Yusuke replies, “This one is actually part of a pair, one from the front view and one from the back. It’s a shame that the second one isn’t here.”

_ Why would the second one not be here? _ Neku thinks to himself.  _ Was it lost? _

“Someone took it?” Rhyme asks, their eyes moving from the painting to Yusuke. 

“That’s an interesting idea to jump to,” Yusuke blinks, a bit surprised, “But a correct one. One of Madarame-sensei’s former pupils took it with her when she left the atelier. I believe it was by accident, so Sensei doesn’t hold it against her.”

Rhyme doesn’t speak for a while, seemingly lost in thought. Neku tries to keep up the conversation, pointing to another piece and giving his opinion on it. 

They don’t say much to Neku until after the three of them have left the exhibit. 

“We’ll catch up to you,” they suddenly say to Shiki. 

“Oh, right now?” Shiki asks. Once again, the people around him know something that he doesn’t. “I’ll wait by Hachiko, okay?”

“Thanks,” Rhyme says, before turning to Neku.

“What’s that about?” he asks. 

“Did you notice it too?” they say vaguely. 

“Notice what?” He shrugs, not entirely sure where this conversation is going. 

“How Yusuke’s explanation for that stolen painting was off. I mean, why would a student just take one of his paintings?”

“It’s happened before, with his most popular painting,” Neku shrugs, the thoughts in his head slowly coming to an entirely different conclusion. “Maybe this was the same one that took that one.”

“I doubt it,” they sigh, “It sounded like since Yusuke said it was an accident, Madarame didn’t do anything like press charges. But if she never returned it, why did he not try to get it back? It’s his work, so why did he just let it go?”

It’s a good question. Why would such a famous artist just let a painting be taken?  _ Especially _ since it’s part of a pair. It doesn’t make sense. What would he gain if he let it go? Wait a second… 

Neku’s eyes widen in realization, “It isn’t his.”

“What isn’t? The painting isn't?”

“I mean,” he pauses, trying to think this whole thing through. It’s the only thing that makes any sense. “Earlier I saw a piece that looked like one of Yusuke’s. If Madarame stole his, who’s to say he didn’t claim any of his other students’ work? Maybe that’s why she took it back. And because she might tell others he’s been plagiarizing work, he let her keep it.”

Rhyme thinks for a long moment, “Do you think Yusuke is having his work taken against his will?”

“Definitely,” Neku says without any doubt, “He didn’t look too happy when we saw his work there.”

“Then we’re gonna help him,” they declare, picking up their pace. “Let’s not leave Shiki waiting too long. We can fill her in about this too.”

They both walk in silence for a moment before Neku asks, “Why tell me specifically?"

“Well, you’re his friend, aren’t you?” Rhyme tilts their head, “I needed to check in case I’m just bein’ paranoid.”

Neku hums, “Why are you so invested in this anyways? Not to be rude, but you just met him today.”

“It’s just… I have a  _ feeling,” _ Rhyme admits with a sigh, “And it’s not a good one.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> rhyme is such a smart cookie i love them
> 
> also you may or may not have noticed, but rhyme uses they/them pronouns! i just think they're neat. and writing neku is either him catching onto things really fast or not at all and its very fun. more coming later on those shiki & ann interactions later, i'm so excited for those two.
> 
> see y'all later!


	3. “Know what you’re doing”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neku tries to work with Yusuke on their class project.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! here’s something to get y’all through the times

The next day after school is spent working on their project. Neku’s never seen where Yusuke lives and honestly it’s… something. It’s as large as he would think an artist would have for a house, but it’s appearance is like a shack that'll blow away in a light wind. Maybe it’s some type of aesthetic?

The first half of his time where he should be thinking and helping plan this project is taken over by him trying to justify living in such a rundown place when you have so much money. It’s not the most productive, so he tries to get his mind off of the topic. Too bad he forgot about all the ideas he had for a theme. _I knew I should’ve written those down._

After a while of coming up with sketches and discarding them, Neku decides that maybe they need conversation. 

“Hey Yusuke, let’s try to talk about something. Maybe we could get some ideas from that?” 

“I see,” Yusuke hums, “This endeavor may indeed bear fruit. What shall we talk about?”

Neku thinks hard for a moment, “What about school? Or- hm… What do you think of Shiki and Eri?”

“Those two? Shiki’s…” He pauses a moment, “She was quiet when I first met her, but I have heard that she was even quieter in her own class. She and Eri together are very energetic, and they let me offer my ideas about patterns to their design projects.”

“They do? Huh, they’ve never mentioned that,” Neku tries to recall any sort of passing mention of it, but comes up with nothing. “At least you’re all getting along, so that’s good.”

“Did you not expect me to?”

“I didn’t know if you would or not,” he shrugs, messing with a bit on his hair, “I barely knew anything about your personality before I invited you to sit with us at lunch.”

“Then why did you?”

“Just thought you could use a couple of people on your side.”

There’s a small pause in the conversation, a short silence as they both think of two different things. Neku hopes he got his point across, as he’s gotten _very_ suspicious of Yusuke’s home life at this point. Not to mention the _feeling_ that Rhyme had yesterday. Those have never been wrong. He needs him to know that he has people to go to

“It’s very intriguing,” Yusuke begins, “Many do not ever notice my presence, so they tend to say whatever without worry. For as long as I have known you, you act nothing like I have heard from them. It’s actually refreshing, to have my expectations be averted.

Neku doesn’t sigh loudly like he wants to, he just exhales slowly through his nose. Of course the first impression Yusuke had of him was negative before even meeting him. That’s all his own fault, but he’s getting a little tired of being reminded of it all the time. 

“I had gone through something a few years ago and was pretty much an asshole until last year,” He pauses. He doesn’t want to outright lie, so he wonders how much he can get away with saying. He’ll go for being vague. “Death kinda does that to you. I’ve changed, but some of our classmates don’t realize that.”

Yusuke nods and the conversation lulls for another moment. Then his head perks up slightly, “I believe that I have an idea for our theme—”

Before he can finish that, the doorbell rings. Yusuke excuses himself for a moment to answer it. 

He decides that if there was any time to act, it would be now. Yusuke had said that Madarame would be in his own room while Neku is here, so if he’s gonna snoop he has to snoop now. 

He sneaks carefully out of the room, going down the hall until he finds the kitchen he passed on the way in. This is his first stop because, judging by the way he eats at lunch and his unhealthy beanpole stature, Yusuke doesn’t eat well. 

Neku opens the fridge first. It wasn’t empty or anything, but it might as well have been. Nothing but condiments, sauces, dressings, nothing to make a real meal out of. To say that that’s _concerning_ is putting it mildly. 

Next he moves onto the cabinets. Mostly dishes and silverware, nothing edible. However, he does spy one in the back corner with a hefty lock on it. With a quick glance around and some telekinesis the lock is no longer a problem, so he opens it up. 

Non-perishable food and snacks are crammed in there, so much so that Neku thought it was about to spill out. As his mind starts to race with all the things this could mean, he carefully puts everything exactly as he found it.

Walking out of the kitchen, he hears Yusuke’s voice. Walking in the direction of the front door, Neku finds the girl from Shujin there (Takamaki, right?) as well as two other boys wearing the same uniform. 

_What are they doing here—?_ Neku’s thought is cut off when he’s startled by a touch on his shoulder. 

“Apologies for scaring you, Sakuraba-kun,” Madarame says, passing him by in the hallway, “Let’s see what all this is about, hmm?”

Neku nods, forcing himself to relax. He introduced himself to the man earlier on his way in. Never has he been more unsettled by the difference between what the evidence suggests and what he sees now. 

He watches it all play out from the background as Madarame asks about the yelling. The Shujin students notice him, the black-haired one keeping a suspiciously close eye on him, like he knows something. _What does he want?_

Neku’s attention is taken by the conversation as Madarame speaks. 

“…Forgive them Yusuke,” he says, “They must’ve heard some bad rumors and came in worry for their friend’s safety.” 

_Safety, huh?_ Neku thinks, _He’s a bit specific for a rumor they never described._

Yusuke sighs, “…Understood, Sensei.” 

After asking them to keep it down, Madarame excuses himself. But not before leaning over to tell Yusuke something quietly. Neku tries to listen in, but he can’t hear anything, only taking in the way his friend’s grip tightens into a fist. 

“Don’t forget to attend to your guest,” Madarame says just before he departs to his room. 

Yusuke turns to him with no small amount of surprise, “Ah, Neku! I didn’t know you were there.”

“I heard you yelling,” Neku steps forward. He’s not exactly lying. “Everything okay now?”

Again he sighs, but then bows, “My apologies… to all of you. That was incredibly discourteous of me.” For a moment, his face lights up with an idea, turning to the Shujin students. “I think you’ll be able to believe in Sensei if you saw that painting.

Neku knows what painting he’s talking about. While going on about his artistic passions during lunch, Yusuke had mentioned that Madarame’s maiden work, _Sayuri,_ was what inspired him to become an artist. Neku can see why. 

“It’s so beautiful…” Takamaki comments as Yusuke shows them a picture of it from his phone. 

“I dunno anything about fine art, but that's impressive,” says the other blond. 

“It’s the most debated piece of artwork he’s created,” Neku explains, walking fully outside, _“Apparently,_ it’s all about the woman’s expression.” 

If that “apparently” seemed flippant, that’s because it’s supposed to be. Personally, Neku finds that the artist’s original intention doesn’t matter as much as the meaning the viewer takes from it. However, this is where Yusuke and him have had many disagreements. 

See, Yusuke is trying to pursue what he calls “true beauty,” a beauty so grand that both artist and viewer can appreciate it with the same awe. 

However, Neku’s view isn’t exactly in line with his. If the focus is more on the interpretation of the viewer than the intent of the artist, it allows for newer and different ideas to travel back and forth. 

Usually at the end of these types of conversations Neku would just shrug, because neither of them are wrong. 

Neku smiles a bit as Yusuke explains his passions to the Shujin students. He likes to hear his friends talk about their interests. That smile is wiped off his face as a dark feeling passes through him. This whole rumor situation might turn out to be a big deal. No matter how much Yusuke tries to clear up everything, Neku saw that bare kitchen. 

“I’m sorry that you took the time to come all this way,” Yusuke turns to Takamaki specifically, “However, as you can see I am preoccupied at the moment. If you’ll excuse me.”

Neku’s not sure how to follow that quick end to the conversation. So he just shrugs and waves a bit, “It was nice seeing you again, Takamaki-san.”

He follows Yusuke back inside. Both of them settling down into the seats they both occupied earlier. But Neku still has some questions on his mind. 

“What rumors were they talking about?”

“Ah, that,” Yusuke hesitates, “Just some horrible nonsense spouted by someone online. I doubt it matters, for they are lies either way.”

“I see.” He doesn’t see. Really, he has too many very specific questions. But those need to be reworded in order to not draw suspicion. “Well, let’s get back to work—”

“Actually, Neku,” He sets down his sketchbook with a sigh, “Is it okay if we continue this another day? That confrontation earlier has put a damper on my inspiration for today, and there is a conversation I need to have with Sensei in private.”

 _A talk with Madarame?_ Neku thinks, _Is that what he told him earlier?_ He has a bad feeling about that. 

“But what about that idea you had?” he asks. 

“We can talk about it over text later,” Yusuke faces away from him, putting his supplies away, “It would also allow more time to think on it overnight, wouldn’t it?”

“Alright, I guess, let’s try this again tomorrow?” he asks, a plan already forming in his mind. 

“I believe that will be fine. Thank you for putting up with me today.”

Neku smiles a bit uneasily, “Don’t worry about it, okay?” Picking up his items, he heads for the door, but hesitates. “Yusuke? Don’t be afraid to tell me things, alright? I can listen any time.”

Yusuke glances at him, turning back to his task, “I… I’ll keep that in mind.”

That’s all Neku knows he’ll get, so he nods. “Good. Well, later.” 

He tries to think that Yusuke will trust him enough to say something, but he’ll be prepared in case he doesn’t. That means mentioning all of this stuff to everyone else who knows (and maybe Eri, since she’s already a bit suspicious anyways). If he can get help, maybe he could pull this off.

Neku _will_ help Yusuke. Somehow. 

He walks out of the front door, not expecting to see the Shujin students still standing outside. 

“What are you still doing here?” he asks, walking up to the group. 

“Oh, Sakuraba-kun!” Takamaki says, turning to him, “About that, we wanted to ask you something.”

“Yeah, it’s about Kitagawa. Since you’re friends and all,” adds the blond boy. 

Neku tilts his head a bit, what could they possibly get from him?

“The thing is,” she starts with a pause of uncertainty, “We’ve heard rumors online about Madarame abusing and plagiarizing from his pupils. We were wondering if you know anything about that.”

 _Those_ were the online rumors? This whole thing is bigger than Neku thought. But if that was the rumor, then that means these three already went to Yusuke to ask about it. That’s probably the _worst_ thing to do first in this situation, since Yusuke is as stubborn and loyal as they come. 

_That talk with Madarame…_ Neku starts to think, a terrible realization dawning on him, _They might’ve just made this whole thing worse!_

“Look,” He tries to put it lightly, “You three don’t exactly know Yusuke. And it’s a bit rude to get into the business of someone you don’t know, right? So maybe you shouldn’t be getting involved—”

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?” The blond boy raises his voice.

“Ryuji, let him finish,” Takamaki elbows him. 

“Why shouldn’t we get involved?” For the first time, the quiet boy with glasses speaks up, “Is that a problem?”

He gets elbowed too. “Stop butting in,” she says.

Despite the inquiring tone, Neku can feel the implied accusation in his words. Just the thought of that makes him feel sick. _Okay, no more sugar-coating._ “It’s only a problem if you confront him about it, one, with no evidence and, two, while the person you’re accusing of being an abuser is _right there.”_

He shakes his head, “Please, just stay out of it. Since you obviously don't know what you’re doing.” 

The blond boy (who’s name is apparently Ryuji) scoffs, leaning back against the railing, “What, and you do, Mr. Expert?”

He huffs, an unwanted feeling rising from his gut. He pushes it back down. “Unfortunately, I do. I know how to have _tact_ , unlike three complete _strangers_ who randomly go to people’s houses and accuse them of things they found online—”

He stops himself from continuing. His words have too much of a bite to them, he realizes. They probably didn’t know how to even begin to approach this whole thing like he does, which is good in some ways — it means they haven’t had experience in it, and Neku wouldn’t wish that on anyone — and bad in others. 

Neku softens his tone, “Sorry. Can you just stay out of this? For his sake, not mine.”

The silence that follows seems like a good time, so with that, he leaves. 

…Or at least, he walks around the corner a fair ways off. There’s no way he’s just gonna leave them there, so, after doing a quick visual and mental scan of the area, he goes to the UG and starts on his way back to the group. 

He finds the three of them (and a cat on the railing?) huddled around a phone held by the glasses-wearing boy. 

_“No candidates found.”_ A robotic tone comes from the phone. 

What could that mean?

“Not a single hit…?” one of them complains. The group brainstorms ideas for whatever they’re looking for, something about a word relating to artists? 

With a confident look, the boy holding the phone shifts his bag on his shoulder and speaks, “A museum.”

_“Candidate found. Beginning navigation.”_

Neku’s barely able to process what that means, because in just moments, the world around him becomes tinted with red and a horrible feeling lodges itself in his gut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’m having a lot of fun with this, i can’t wait until we get to the good stuff
> 
> i no longer have an excuse to not write this but updates will still probably stay the same frequency (bc i have no sense of time and neither does my procrastination)
> 
> anyhow… more persona ppl!!! first was ann, and now ryuji, akira, and mona have arrived! you’ll see them quite a lot from now on.
> 
> that’s all for today!


	4. "Properly Introduced"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neku finds himself panicking in a weird world and the Phantom Thieves give proper introductions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kdsafj;lakdfjs HELLO
> 
> there are things in this chapter that will all be explained in due time,,,, dw about it,,,,,
> 
> enjoy!

Travelling to the Underground was a normal occurrence for Neku. He has a city to help run, after all. 

The first time he did it (It was _unwilling_ on his part _,_ which should be noted. Joshua had brought him there to talk. Little did he know at the time that a supposedly simple talk would turn his life into what it is now) a nasty feeling had risen in his throat, as the feeling of that frequency brought back too many memories of the Game along with it.

Nowadays he could handle it a lot better. It’s just as comfortable as being in the Realground, like a second home. He feels like he should be more off-put by that since he probably _shouldn’t_ feel that way, considering he’s not, well, _dead._

The point is, Neku has never considered going to a _higher_ frequency than the UG. If it was a push before, then this sensation was a shove off of a cliff.

He takes quite a few unsteady steps back, watching the world shift red around him. 

_That isn’t normal!_ he thinks almost frantically. The most change he’s seen going from the RG to the UG was the appearance of Reapers or Players or other small things unseen by lower frequencies. But now a tall, golden, and gaudy building rises from where the atelier once stood. Is this the museum they had been talking about?

He slowly becomes more aware of the weight on his back. Calming down, Neku lowers his head at the comforting feeling of his wings. (They don’t disappear from existence when he goes to the RG, they just fade and become intangible, his mind mostly ignoring their existence unless prompted.) 

They look more feathery than the normal sharpness that characterizes Reaper wings. Closing his eyes, he inwardly curses all higher powers for his stupid “enhanced sensitivity to changes in frequency.” Why does _he_ have to be the outlier? Wack.

Neku takes deep breaths before taking note of his surroundings. There are figures where the Shujin students had been standing, now wearing odd clothing and making their way toward the building. _The museum?_ He wonders, _Are they the ones that made it appear out of nowhere?_

They haven’t seemed to have noticed him yet. The weird cartoonish creature glances in his direction a few times, but doesn’t seem to actually _see_ him and turns to follow the group. 

Can they not see him? Maybe he drove his own frequency up even higher in his earlier panic. He tries to turn his frequency back down to the RG (or even the _UG,_ for goodness sake) but the most that changes are the wings on his back turning slightly lighter and translucent for a moment. What does that mean? He can figure that out later, when he has less to worry about. 

There’s something strange blocking him from going back down, like a gate with a big and hefty lock on it. Neku definitely doesn’t have the key, much less the energy to break it right now. This place feels like it sucks the energy straight from him. 

The world around him pulses as he looks around, an annoying and distracting thing to feel while he’s trying to focus. 

Leading up to what he assumes is the entrance is a long and crowded line of people who definitely weren’t there a second ago. Neku’s focus lingers on the crowd. Their voices can be heard from where he is, but no words can be made out in particular. Their faces slip from his mind as he looks from one person to the next. 

_Where the hell am I?_ he thinks, glancing the direction they all ran off to. A flicker of movement catches his eye just before it disappears into an open skylight on one of the shorter roofs. 

_That’s where they’re headed, huh._

Neku decides to follow them further inside the museum, maybe he’ll find the answers with them. 

Except there’s a bit of a problem. A guard spots him as he tries to get past. Disproportionately weird as it is, it’s still _very_ large and _very_ intimidating. 

Reaching in right his pocket, he pulls out a pin, any pin. He can easily tell which one it is and what it does by the way it hums in his hand. He’s always kept pins on him, a habit he and his friends have kept over from the Game. 

He’s gotten stronger since then, so he braces himself for fighting this… _thing._

The guard rushes at him, Neku dodging out of the way in time. Focusing, he calls upon the ability from the pin in his hand. 

Nothing happens. Knowing his luck, he probably should’ve expected it. This is a newer, weirder world. He’s going up against enemies he doesn’t recognize in an environment that gives him a headache. Of course something he relies on doesn't work. The guard turns around. 

_Shit._ Neku decides it’s a good time to take his leave. Using his wings to his advantage, he leaps as far aways as he can. Unfortunately, he’s never been that good at using them, and stumbles a bit as he lands. He picks himself up quickly, ignoring the pulsing of the strange world around him, and runs like hell. 

“Did you see that stupid monument? This whole situation’s bullshit,” Skull complains, leg bouncing anxiously. “‘Sensei,’ my _ass._ Why does he even put up with Madarame? He’s gotta know that he’s bein’ plagiarized, right?”

“Who knows?” Mona shrugs, “Maybe he’s just in denial?”

The four of them rest in the lobby-ish area of the palace, alert in case shadows come around. They haven’t found a safe room yet, but they decided that they still needed a place to talk before exiting the palace. 

Akira stays standing as the rest sit around on the couches. It’s better for him to be on watch, so the others have more time if they need to get up and fight. He turns back toward the group, watching Panther’s face, deep in thought. 

“What’s up, Panther?” He asks, glancing around again to make sure nothing is approaching. 

“It’s just what Sakuraba was saying,” she admits, “He seemed to know what’s been going on.”

“If he knows, then why the hell is he keeping it secret?” Ryuji says, “Sounds shady to me.”

“I dunno, he does seem to care a lot about his friend,” Mona shakes his head, “Maybe he’s nice, despite that weird feeling…” He says that last part low, Akira quickly realizing that he may have been the only one who heard. He decides not to press it.

“See?” Panther nods, “That’s the thing I keep thinking about…”

“I get where he’s coming from,” Akira says, turning toward the conversation. “I mean, maybe we could’ve thought that whole thing through a bit better. Talking to the volleyball team didn’t get us anywhere during the rally. And Skull, what would Kamoshida have done if he was right there the whole time we were asking about it? It would’ve made the whole thing worse. So, I get it.”

The three of them stare at Akira with a look that he can’t decipher. It's not a _negative_ look, just an odd one. “What?” he asks, taking another scan of the area. For safety’s sake, not to avoid their gazes. 

“Oh, nothing,” Panther waves dismissively, “But I agree, I think he might’ve been onto something.” 

“Hmm,” Mona hums thoughtfully, “I wonder what he meant by—” 

He’s cut off by the sound of rushing footsteps coming in their direction. Everyone jumps to their feet, turning to the sound. 

A loud clang comes from the hall leading to the gold monument. A flash of light follows the sound, right before something leaps around the corner. 

_No,_ Akira realizes, _that’s a person!_ And not just anyone, but the boy they _just_ saw a few minutes ago. He’s still in his uniform, though he looks more disgruntled with his orange hair awkwardly falling out of the short messy ponytail he wore earlier. How did he evade the guards? Actually, much more importantly—

“How did he get _here?!”_ Panther gasps. 

Running after him are shadows, shouting, _“Unauthorized Entry!”_ and, _“KILL THE INTRUDER!”_

There’s four shadows in total, real mean-looking too. With a look shared among his teammates, they summon their personas. 

“Whoa, why are you jumping to _murder—!?”_ Sakuraba cuts himself off as he sees the group. “What the…?” 

Akira summons Archangel, planning to push the main two back. Skull covers him while Panther lashes out with her whip at the next closest one, keeping it from getting too close.

“Hey watch out!” Mona calls out. Akira glances up just in time to see the last one jump for Sakuraba…

…And just in time to see the boy dodge out of the way with speed no average human should have, swiping his hand out and releasing two giant pulses that throws all the shadows far back down the hallway they came from. 

Despite the display of whatever the hell that power was, he looks almost disappointed. Akira ignores that for now, this is the perfect time to retreat. 

“Let’s run!” Akira calls to the others, growing more wary of the sounds of the shadows getting their bearings. They all run back the way they came, making sure Sakuraba follows closely.

Finally making it to the entrance, Akira turns to him. 

“We’ll explain things when we go back to the real world,” he assures, noting how surprisingly calm he seems for being suddenly shoved into the metaverse.

“The real world—?”

Akira activates the metaverse app before ever realizing Neku was saying something. 

As soon as they’re back, Ryuji turns to the Sakuraba. “What was that thing you did back there? With the weird dodging and stuff?”

Taking an unsteady step back, Sakuraba grips the railing like a lifeline, his face looks strained but relieved, almost. Ann takes a concerned step forward just as Akira wonders if he’s hurt anywhere. 

After a moment with his eyes closed, Sakuraba runs a hand through his hair, toying with the ends of it. He grimaces, as if just noticing how unkempt it’s gotten. “T-That’s… a _long_ story. More importantly,” he looks away distractedly. It’s odd how he seems almost quiet, but Akira supposes that might just be from shock or something. 

Sakuraba takes a deep breath, before continuing, “What the _fuck_ was that place? Why were you all wearing those weird outfits? What the _hell_ were those things that appeared out of your body?” he turns to gesture to Morgana, who had jumped up onto the railing, _“Where the hell did that cat come from?”_

“That’s—” Ann looks ready to retaliate with her own questions, but she stops, looking off to the side. “…also a _long_ story.” 

“Excuse you!” Morgana hisses, “I am _not_ a cat!”

“Well _obviously_ he’s not gonna know that just by lookin’ at ya,” Ryuji responds. 

He looks back over to where Sakuraba stands, staring at Morgana with a carefully calm look. _Too_ careful, almost forced. He’s probably processing everything. Akira kinda feels bad, but not really. The last time someone was introduced to the metaverse, the stakes were a bit higher so he hadn’t realized the ridiculousness of it all. Now he has to stop himself from showing it on his face. 

“Not gonna lie,” Sakuraba sighs, “A talking cat somehow isn’t the weirdest thing I’ve seen in my life.”

Akira cracks a bit of a smile at that, “Not the reaction I expected.” 

“Yeah, you must’ve seen some pretty strange stuff if it makes hearing Morgana talk seem like it’s no big deal,” Ann laughs a little. 

Morgana huffs, still annoyed by being called a cat, “Whatever, we still need to explain things. Not to mention he needs to explain how he could use any sort of power without a persona.”

Sakuraba messes with the tips of his hair, “I’ll explain what I can, but maybe somewhere more private? You guys don’t want anyone finding out about things, do you?”

Akira perks up a bit at that. Has he already figured them out just by being in the metaverse? Just the thought of it makes him tense more than he already is. “When did you figure it out?”

“Sometime while I was running for my life, I guess,” he shrugs. 

Various questions rise about just exactly how he had figured it out as they begin walking toward the nearest station in Shibuya. But Sakuraba only answers that he’ll explain later. 

“We haven’t even properly introduced ourselves, huh?” Ann says, tilting her head. “Since I’m the only one you really know.”

Ryuji decides to go first, saying, “Yo, I’m Ryuji Sakamoto. The bratty cat in his bag is Morgana.”

“Hey!” Morgana peeks over Akira's shoulder, “Don’t speak for me, you—!”

 _“Anyways,_ I’m Akira Kurusu,” he interrupts what would probably be another petty argument. 

Sakuraba puts a hand in his pocket, but waves a little with his other one, “Neku Sakuraba. But, uh, just use my first name.” 

“It’s fine if you use ours too,” Ann smiles, “Now that that’s out of the way, where exactly should we head to?” She idly bumps Akira’s shoulder with hers. He puts his hands in his pockets, shifting slightly away in thought. There’s actually a few places he has in mind. 

“Well, what about that diner place on Central Street?” Ryuji suggests. 

For some reason, Neku almost stops walking. Ann slows down with him in surprise, causing the rest of them to follow suit. 

“Something wrong?” she asks. 

“Let’s say someone I know…” Neku pauses, “…works there. Is there anywhere else we can go? Somewhere outside of Shibuya.”

“It’s not too late to go to our place!” Morgana says right next to Akira’s ear. 

He winces at the volume, “Ow.” 

“Sorry.”

“You live in Yongen right?” Ryuji asks, “That’s not too far off.”

“Yeah,” Akira nods, focusing on the approaching station. “Come on, it’s this way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ngl out of all the chapters i've written, this one is the one i haven't really thought much of, despite it being the chapter where one of the sorta Big Things happen ya know? but going back through and editing it, i know i’m still satisfied with it.
> 
> but maybe that whole thing is just cuz my mind's astral projected to the future of this fic and it stays there stubbornly even tho i Know that i need to get the in-between done first. ehhhh but that's just me
> 
> anyways, tell me what you thought if you want! see ya next time!


	5. "Tell You That"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People start to get some explanations, but some are more satisfied than others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi hello howdy! updates may slow a little bc i've got Shit To Do, but otherwise everything is mostly fine. 
> 
> more importantly, my lovely friend Bee made some [amazing fan art!](https://dootnoot7125.tumblr.com/post/616436778137747456/its-quarter-to-1-am-and-i-was-overwhelmed-with) i cannot get over it still,,,, it's just so good,,,, all the support i've been getting for this is insane to me like??? wow.
> 
> i've got nothing else to say, so enjoy!

“What you experienced is a world called the metaverse,” Morgana explains, “In it are Palaces, locations that have been heavily distorted by someone’s cognition, by the way they see the world.”

The five of them currently sit around Akira’s room, a couple of chairs pulled out from the depths of the clutter still in the corners of the room. He should probably finish cleaning that soon, before Morgana decides to say something about it. 

Sojiro, surprisingly enough, left them alone with a promise to come back up and kick them out when it gets too late. Good thing he bought that studying excuse.

The more the four of them (Well, three, as Akira only chips in once in a while for extra clarification) explain the metaverse to Neku, the more he wants to know about the boy’s place in all this. 

It’s obvious that even though he doesn’t seem to know of the metaverse or have a persona, he has some sort of power that resides in him. _What is it?_ he wonders, _How did he get it? Is it strong?_

That isn’t the only thing curious about him. For some reason Akira feels like he’s seen him somewhere before. Tokyo may be a big place, but he could’ve easily seen him hanging out at one of the popular after-school spots. Something tells him there’s more to it than that, though. 

“So that’s what _really_ happened,” He hears Neku mutter, “I heard about Kamoshida from a friend. They said that there was more to the rumors than people thought. I wanted to help them do something about it, but I couldn’t do anything. I mean, I don’t even go to Shujin.”

Both Ryuji and Ann let out small sighs at that. 

“The fact that you even thought about trying to help is more than I can say for most people,” Ann glances to the side.

Ryuji agrees, “Besides, that bastard’s long gone now. Hopefully for good.”

Neku nods, “Hopefully.”

“Well, if that’s all. How about we move on, okay?” Morgana begins softly, looking around to check for the mood before continuing, “Neku, about that power you used in the metaverse. It wasn’t a persona.”

He glances away before responding, “That’s right, it wasn’t.”

“So…” Ryuji drags the word out, “What is it?”

Neku fidgets and with his hair before beginning to speak, “You guys described the metaverse as existing alongside the real world. Well, what if I said there’s something in between them?”

“In between the metaverse and the real world?” Ann repeats.

Honestly, Akira _has_ thought about if there could be other places like the metaverse, but those have always seemed like they would be separate from it, at least in his mind. However, those were usually late night thoughts that rambled on about this and that, so he can’t really count that. But in between here and the metaverse? That means Neku has a somewhat distant connection to it after all. 

“I like to think of it like radio waves. Each station is at a different frequency, but there’s still some overlap between them where you can hear both at the same time. What you call the real world is like just another station, the Realground, or the RG. It’s where you and I are from. Above that is where my psychs — the power I used — come from, the Underground, or the UG.” Neku leans back on the couch, “I’ve only ever been able to go up to the UG’s frequency, until today. The metaverse is way higher than what I’m used to, so I was kinda disoriented when I got there.”

“How’d you get into the metaverse anyways?” Ann asks, “You weren’t around when we went in.”

“I was, actually,” Neku looks away from the group, “Spying? I was trying to see what you all were up to from the UG. I must’ve been a low enough frequency for you to take me with you. When I entered I kinda panicked and put myself up to a frequency you couldn’t see.”

“So depending on the frequency, we either can or can’t see you. But we can interact with you?” Morgana asks. 

“Something like that.”

Ann hums as the four of them think a bit on the info, then speaks, “You said you use psychs to fight, right? What does that mean?”

Neku hesitates a moment, before pulling something out of his pocket. “I can do some stuff without these, but I’m more used to them,” he opens his hand to reveal brightly colored pins, “Each of these pins activate a certain psych that can be used in the UG. What they do can be from moving things to setting stuff on fire. They didn’t work in the metaverse when I tried.”

 _So he can pretty much do anything if he has the right pin for it?_ Akira wonders. That would be pretty useful, if only they worked in the metaverse. 

“I haven’t seen so many pins in one place since that pin craze a while ago,” Ann comments, “Actually they’re still pretty popular, but using them for stuff like this? That’s kinda cool!”

“It is?” he looks surprised, “I haven’t really thought about it…”

“What’s this UG place like anyways?” Ryuji asks. “You said something about bein’ invisible.”

“It’s basically the same as the RG, only you’re invisible to everyday people and can only slightly interact with objects,” Neku shrugs. 

“Is it like the metaverse, where it’s made from human cognition? Or is it made from something else?” Mona asks. 

Neku thinks for a long moment, before answering, “It’s not exactly human cognition, I think. I’m not completely sure, but it definitely has something to do with humanity. If you know how to, you can influence how people act, generally speaking. Other than that, there’s nothing really worth noting.”

 _Nothing worth noting?_ Akira knows that’s a lie. Otherwise, how would he know so much about it? _If that’s true, he won’t mind a simple question._ “How’d you get your abilities?” 

His question is immediately shot down. “I can’t tell you that.” 

“What do you mean you can’t tell us?!” Morgana springs up in outrage, “We told you all about our power!”

“Don’t get me wrong, I would if I could, but…” He sighs, “I’d be in trouble in a lot of ways. I have rules that I need to follow for the UG, so it’s not exactly something I’m allowed to say.”

Akira’s eyes narrow at that. Something or someone is in a position that can make Neku not talk about this, even in private. From what he can tell, it doesn’t seem too much like a loyalty thing. Blackmail, maybe? Either way, his mention of not being allowed to say something instead of just coming up with an excuse must mean _something._ Maybe he’s giving hints? Could they get anything else out of him?

With a glance to the other Thieves, Akira nods to them. 

“Rules? So there’s somebody who’s not letting you tell us?” Ann asks. 

Neku glances away, making a face. There’s a pause, his posture and suddenly straightening as he leans back against the couch. A look settles on his face, a furrowed one that Akira doesn’t know what to make of. Neku crosses his arms, “If that’s what you want to think, go ahead.”

It’s not exactly a confirmation, nor is it a denial. He’s just dodging the question. Something’s changed here. 

“Are the rules like some sort of honor code?” Morgana asks, “Like in a top-secret organization?”

“Sure, if that’s what you believe,” he shrugs, dodging again, “What do you want me to say? It’s your choice to believe me or not, just like it’s my choice to lie or not.”

Akira can tell what he’s doing, he can see the rest of the Thieves thinking about it too. The way Neku maneuvers through their questions seems off, though. Like he’s copying someone awkwardly. His simple sort of “no comment” response from earlier was different from what he says now, more honest. Just what exactly made him change his approach?

Finally, with a look to the sky Thieves, Neku uncrosses his arms, playing with his hair yet again, “I said earlier that I’d explain what I can.”

 _There it is,_ Akira thinks, _that’s the way he began._

“Fine. We’ll drop the topic,” he decides, despite the looks both Ann and Ryuji give him. Morgana looks at him with something akin to an understanding (At least he thinks so. Akira’s only getting slightly better at reading cat facial expressions). 

_“But_ it’d be nice if you decided to work with us on this whole thing,” Morgana adds knowingly. The big _if_ in that statement goes unsaid. They’ll drop this _if_ Neku helps them out, it’s only fair, all things considered. Otherwise whatever was keeping him from talking might not like the Phantom Thieves trying to investigate deeper. 

After a short pause, Ann catches on faster than Ryuji does, “R-Right! We all want to help out Kitagawa, so we should work together, shouldn’t we?”

Ryuji needs to be elbowed before he actually gets it, “Oh. Y-yeah, riiiight, so whaddya say?” 

Even though each side is not even in the amount of info they have on each other, they can balance the scales. 

Neku looks between the four of them, obviously considering it heavily. His gaze finally stops on Akira, who offers a hand. 

“You with us?”

Finally, Neku nods, “Why not?”

With a handshake, the deal is sealed. 

Now that that’s all settled for the most part, they need a plan. 

“Let me help you in the palace,” Neku blurts out, surprising the Thieves just as they had begun talking about how to include him. 

Akira would be absolutely fine with letting Neku help them out in battle, and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t want to see what he could do. However…

“Will you be okay there?” Ann asks, beating him to it. “After we left the metaverse, you—”

“It was nothing,” Neku interrupts hastily, “I just wasn’t adjusted to it yet. I’m, uh, sensitive to changes in frequency… It even happens if I haven’t been to the UG in a while.” Why does Akira feel like that’s a lie? “I just need to get used to it, I can help.”

The four of them glance at each other with uncertainty. Sure, they’ve had people in the metaverse without a persona, but never someone who was actually sensitive to it. Who knows what could happen?

“Well, Morgana’s sorta our metaverse expert here,” Ryuji shrugs, “What do you think?”

Mona hums, “That depends on how Neku reacts to distortions within the palace. We know that being there for a short amount of time isn’t a risk, but our thief attire keeps the distortion from affecting us. I’m not sure time would affect it, but if we all get deep enough into the palace’s distortion, even I can’t exactly predict what would happen.”

“Then we can’t risk it,” Akira decides, turning back to Neku, a distant look on the other’s face. “I’m sorry. We’ll find another way.”

There’s a long moment of silence, Neku obviously caught up in his own head. “Fine,” he says, “Then tell me how I can help here, in reality.”

“We could have him be on look out,” Ann suggests, “So that we’re not caught out in front of Madarame’s place.”

Ryuji leans back in his chair, “Or he can make sure Yusuke’s doin’ alright and all.”

“That’s it?” Neku frowns. 

“No,” Morgana says, “Palaces are unpredictable, especially for those unacquainted with the ruler. I got captured in the previous one due to something along those lines before. We don’t know Madarame well, but any information that you provide will surely prove beneficial to our infiltration,” he says with confidence, then hesitates , “…I think. 

“So you want me to snoop?” Neku asks, “I mean, I’ll do it. But you’re gonna have to be more specific in what I need to look for.”

Ann hums to herself, “I think we’ll need to look into the palace more so we can decide on what we need.”

Akira agrees, “No use trying to guess.”

“Just try to dig up as much dirt as you can on that asshole,” Ryuji adds, “We’ll find some way to use it.

“Alright then,” Neku nods, his eyes determined, “I got this.”

Since a plan is now in place, Akira feels like a little bit of the tension has finally left his shoulders. Apparently, it’s even visible in his movements, as Morgana decides to comment on it. 

“Y’know, you look more relaxed than you did before,” he says while Akira gets ready for bed. 

“Do I?”

“Yeah,” he yawns, stretching out, “It’s like you were so tense before, and we could tell you were distracted by something. Now you’re more relaxed and focused.”

Akira simply hums in response. What is he supposed to say? He runs through the motions of setting out his uniform for tomorrow and getting into his pajamas. Going downstairs to the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face, he takes his time. 

He doesn’t _dislike_ that Morgana saw through him so easily. Maybe it’s because he expected it, with him hanging around him all the time. But Morgana had used “we,” meaning he somehow knew that Ryuji and Ann saw this as well. 

The others noticing this is not going to do him any favors. Ryuji and Ann were the type to ask about it, whereas Mona can tell when he doesn’t want to say anything. More importantly, what if he got distracted at a critical moment? He’s the _leader,_ he can’t afford that. 

Akira forces the thought out of his mind, _That won’t happen._ He just needs to get his shit together and stop zoning out whenever things feel a little too much like deja vu.

He can do that at least, he can focus on the moment rather than the past. Yeah, he can do that. And he has an idea, too. There’s a handy ability he can use any time he feels like he’s starting to drift away. 

_Focus…_

Akira looks up into the mirror, shocking himself into dropping his towel in the sink. His eyes glow an unnatural gold, highlighted by the very ability they represent. 

“Huh. I didn’t know they did that,” he muses to himself. Who knew using his Third Eye ability would affect his appearance? He’ll have to experiment with that tomorrow. 

He turns it off, the world around him brightens and his eyes return to normal. He dries his face and leaves. 

“You know,” Morgana says as he walks back upstairs, “I feel like something’s _off_ about Neku.”

“Why’s that?” Akira asks, even though he can see where he’s coming from somewhat. There was something just a bit off that he could feel whenever Neku had been thinking heavily about something. It was almost like he was looking _through_ whoever was the focus of his gaze. It was especially unsettling when it was focused on him. 

“Well, I don’t know why, but he feels almost… unnatural? No, that’s not exactly it,” he shakes his head, pacing around the floor, “It’s like how you can tell something’s a cognition. It’s a sense that I just _know_ he’s not exactly where we’re from.”

Instead of mentioning that not everyone can immediately tell when something is a cognition, Akira just nods, “Think he’s from that UG place?”

“No,” Morgana says with certainty, but hesitates, “It’s like he’s a normal person, just… nevermind. Forget I said anything.”

Akira decides not to push the subject. Morgana settles down on his bed, curled up and still mumbling something to himself. 

It’s an interesting topic to bring up, especially right now, just before the end of the day. He thinks about the comment he made earlier, Morgana must’ve been sitting on this ever since they all met Neku. Despite how much he tried to play it off, it seemed to really bother him. 

He trusts Morgana’s instincts, they’re never led them astray so far when it came to the metaverse. Since this may be about another weird alternate realm, he’ll try to look into it, for Mona’s sake at least. 

“Hey, didn’t I tell you to forget about it?” Morgana calls from the other side of the room. “Come on, let’s just get some sleep.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> for clarification, the PT only explained the bare basics of the metaverse and what personas are. they haven't told Neku everything just like he hasn't told them, just to make it a bit fairer. also i didnt feel like writing two explanations lmaonade
> 
> anyways, they're gonna work together now! also because i make the rules, all the palaces are gonna be a bit different than both p5 and p5r, just so things make more sense with the overall flow of the story. no spoilers tho. more on that later. 
> 
> also about the third eye thing, that's only one of the headcanons i'm gonna shove into this story. there's about to be a lot more where that came from, including on the twewy side of things. 
> 
> but to move on to a different topic, i really love writing all these conversations everyone has. If things feel a little too dialogue-y it's probably bc i got carried away. i just love writing them react to Neku's,,,, *gestures vaguely* .....yeah that. also i wonder who neku was copying? its kinda obvi if u think about the people he spends his time around.....
> 
> anyways that's all folks, see ya!


	6. “Want To See”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on TGSH:  
> the PT: haha yeah we know that whole thing was weird lets explain what happened  
> neku: aight  
> the PT: also what the fuck are you  
> neku, who didn’t feel like getting shot that day: i am legally unable to answer that
> 
> And now back to dead kids and not-so-dead kids:  
> The Phantom Thieves decide on a new hideout.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I deleted the last chapter, since some of the links on there have since become unreliable or closed. The basics of it was: support Black Lives Matter, protest against police brutality all over the world, and please donate and support creators of color, since they are often overlooked.
> 
> onto this one, which is one of my favorites for a big reason.

The next day moves like it’s in slow motion. The clock ticks, each morning class drags on more and more. 

After being caught up in everything yesterday, today feels dull. The most Akira can do is barely listen to the lesson and look at the back of Ann’s head. Even Morgana can tell he’s bored from his place inside the desk. 

“If you bounce your leg any faster you’ll drill a hole in the floor,” Morgana comments. From then on Akira tries to make a conscious effort to stay still, though that’s basically a failed task from the start. 

“Why are you so jittery today?” Ann asks during lunch. She sits backwards on her chair, her crossed arms and hair resting on top of his desk. Ryuji leans back against the desk next to him, foot tapping on the ground in a constant pattern. Morgana’s tail flicks out of his desk, two blue eyes peeking up at him. All three of them look to him for his answer. 

“I guess I’m just worried,” Akira shrugs. Taking a bite of his food (Leftover curry. For some reason, Sojiro felt the need to give him some before he left), he turns away from the looks he’s getting and toward the window. 

In reality, he’s putting it lightly. He just needs to _do_ something. Sure, Neku’s got everything covered in the real world, but Akira still feels like he needs to do something _now._ He knows exactly why, too. 

He saw the way Yusuke stiffened as Madarame talked to him too low to hear. He recognized the mask of polite obedience. He knows what it hides. He was convinced from then on that Madarame needed to be stopped, anything else was just more evidence to add to the pile.

His gaze snaps back into focus as Ann slides a hand over his wrist, a foreign gesture that grounds him back into reality. “Yusuke’s gonna be alright,” she assures, “We’ll make sure of it.”

“Yeah, man, we’ll get this all over with before you know it,” Ryuji claps a hand on his shoulder, another gesture Akira can’t help but focus on. “Plus, we have Neku with him and stuff. He’ll be taken care of in the real world too.”

Akira leans back, slipping away from their hold. They don’t even know half of why he’s worried, but at the same time their comfort reaches it, making him feel less anxious. He straightens his posture and nods, trying to appear confident when he says, “Thank you.”

The conversation shifts to a different topic, and Akira finds himself out of focus again. The two grounding touches are gone. Now his mind is blank, the thoughts that he was distracted from are pushed to the side. But with that he’s suddenly reminded of what had occurred last night, and now is as good a time as any to test it.

Immediately his Third Eye pushes the dimmed world around him to the background, his friends highlighted to stand out. He wonders if they’ll notice. 

“And that’s why…” Ryuji trails off from whatever he was saying as he looks to Akira. So _he_ can see his eyes change, who else can? “W-Woah dude! Your eyes!” Quickly, Akira shushes him, glancing around with his head down in case anyone had looked over. 

“Uhhhhh, Akira? Your eyes are kinda,” Ann gestures vaguely, “Glowing. Golden too.”

Morgana speaks up from his place in the desk, “Let me see!” After Akira leans back in his seat to let him see, Mona hums thoughtfully, “Your eyes… they remind me of a shadow’s eyes.”

The group is silent for a moment, before Ann pipes up, “Not that I don’t absolutely _love_ ominous omens and all but, what is _that_ supposed to mean? _”_

“It means that this has something to do with the metaverse… probably,” Mona locks eyes with Akira, which reminds him to turn it off again, “Oh, your eyes are back to normal. Do you know why they change like that?”

Akira shrugs, realizing he should’ve planned an explanation, “They do that sometimes.”

“Even before you came to Tokyo?” Ryujis asks.

“No, definitely not,” he searches for a way to not make this sound too weird, “I guess it’s when I’m really focused? It lets me focus on specific things that would be easily missable…” 

“Wow, so things that happen in the metaverse can happen here?” Ann asks, taking a bite of her food. 

“Wait, what?” Akira asks, realizing that he should’ve assumed that they glowed in the metaverse, too. He did mainly use the ability there, after all. 

“Oh, yeah,” Ann shrugs, ”I assumed it was like how I can see better in the dark whenever we’re there. Or how Ryuji’s teeth are sharper.”

“Huh,” is all Akira can say. Really, he should’ve noticed. But maybe it’s because those changes seemed natural to what he knows of his friends that he didn’t think twice about it. He can recall sending Ann to look around some corners into particularly dark hallways to see if shadows had lurked about, but he never really questioned it. He must’ve subconsciously realized she would be the best for the job. 

Ryuji scratches the back of his head, “Over there, they’re more yellowy? I guess they stand out here more cuz they’re glowing and gold and stuff…” He trails off, realization dawning on his face, “Wait, is it like how Mona can talk in the real world?”

“You might be onto something for once.” Morgana crawls out of the desk, sitting on top of it as the rest move closer to shield him from sight. “The metaverse affects the real world on a broad scale, that’s a fact. But our connection to it might be strong enough to affect our daily lives,” he turns to Akira, “Be careful when your eyes glow like that. We’ve got no idea who might see and what they might think.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Akira says, pushing up his glasses, “I’ll be cautious.”

The rest of lunch is spent talking about things that would be cool to have in reality as well. Akira mostly stays quiet, watching his friends argue over which of their powers are cooler (apparently he doesn’t count because he can use multiple). At least to the outside viewer it would look like they’re talking about superheroes or something. 

After lunch, the school day seems to pass by in a blink. Then, the bell rings, and the day is done. 

Akira had already set up a meeting with the others to discuss a new hideout after school, so all he needs to do now is a “supply run” (which is basically going around the campus and emptying out all the vending machines) before he meets up with them. He’s reached the ones by the school entrance by the time Morgana decides to say something about it.

“Are you _sure_ you need more MadBull? Don’t you have enough already?” he asks warily over his shoulder. 

Akira shakes his head. “This,” he puts yen into the machine with every ounce of determination he can muster, “…is life or death.”

He hears Morgana sigh, “Whatever you say, Leader.” He slips out of his bag and onto his shoulder before jumping on top of the vending machine, “I’m gonna go wait with the others. You’ll need the room in your bag anyways.”

With that, Morgana leaves. Akira almost continues what he was doing, but he hears someone giggle behind him. Immediately on guard, he quickly turns to see a short first year student behind him. At first glance, he might’ve thought they were a middle schooler, if they weren’t wearing the same uniform as him. 

“I didn’t mean to surprise you,” they say, idly pulling down their beanie, “I just thought your cat was cute. What’s its name?”

It takes Akira a moment to realize that they mean Morgana, still focused on how they possibly snuck up behind him (he’s usually more cautious than this). As well as how they don’t seem to be wary of him, despite all the rumors going about. “His name’s Morgana. And, uh, he’s not mine.”

“He isn’t?” They tilt their head. Something about them seems familiar. “Then why is he always in your bag?”

Still trying to figure out why he seems to know them from somewhere, Akira shrugs, “He likes to be tall.”

“I see,” the student nods in complete understanding, moving to stand next to him and lean on the next vending machine. Nothing is stopping him from leaving at any time. “Kurusu-senpai, right? Well, my name’s Rhyme. You know Beat? He’s my older brother.”

 _That’s_ why they’re so familiar, he’s seen them hanging around Ryuji’s friend, Beat. Akira isn’t very close to the guy himself, but he’s one of the few people to greet him in the hallway and treat him with basic human decency, which is more than he can say for a lot of people at school. He appreciates it, so he’s always thought he should try to get to know him better. 

“Need something from me?” Akira asks, avoiding their studying gaze. Maybe Rhyme doesn’t mean it like that, but he feels like he’s being analyzed.

“Nothin’ major. I’m a member of the student council,” Akira freezes up at those words, “And I’d heard that people were treating you poorly. I wanted to check on you.”

Akira shifts his bag a little nervously, “And that means?”

Rhyme laughs a bit, waving their hand as if to clear the air, “Nothing bad. I just know this school can get hard to deal with sometimes, so I just felt like I should let you know you’re not alone. But you know that already.” 

Akira stays silent, waiting for them to continue. They obviously came here to talk about more important things.

“You’re very quiet, y’know,” They say, “Not that it’s a bad thing. Are you the observant type? Seems like it. I’m sure you’ve figured out what I’m actually here to talk to you about.” 

Akira nods, “You’re here to accuse me of something.” Probably something to do with Kamoshida’s change of heart, too. 

“That’s not really it, unless you have something to be accused of,” Rhyme says simply, head tilted as they pause for an answer. When he doesn't respond, they continue, “I’m here to warn you. As you already know, student council president, Makoto Niijma, is getting very interested in you. She’s pulling out all the stops, so be careful of what you say and where you say it.”

 _She’ll find out, no matter what,_ he gathers from their words. Well, looks like he’s going to have a stalker sometime soon.

He glances down, trying to read their intentions. Rhyme’s attitude has been nothing but friendly this entire time and they don’t seem to be lying. They haven’t even directly mentioned the Phantom Thieves. Yet. 

“Is there something I should avoid saying in particular?” He tries, seeing if maybe he can figure out if they know anything. 

Rhyme tilts their head, folding their hands together and not breaking eye contact, “Just nothin’ that can be used against you.”

Akira has to give them credit for that one, he might need to be more specific at a different time. For now, maybe he can try a different approach. “Why warn me? I’m the local criminal, after all.”

Rhyme shrugs, “Really, I just had to. It was just that… I had this _feeling.”_ They pause for a moment, a moment that’s too long for his liking. There’s the flash of a somewhat haunted look that crosses their face. Maybe he would’ve thought of it as something odd, or a bit ironic — someone who looks too young to be in high school looking like they have wisdom beyond what time can give — _if_ it hadn’t been pointed in his direction. He doesn’t like the feeling it gives him, that familiar look he’s sure he has seen somewhere else. 

The moment passes and he tries to fill the silence, something he’s _never_ felt the need to do before, “Is that all?”

“Pretty much,” They say, their friendly attitude back once again, “Later, Akira-senpai!” They wave as they walk away. Somehow he went from last to first name basis with them in one conversation, but he can’t bring himself to care much (even though he absolutely knows even more rumors will start because of it). 

It takes Akira a moment to continue with the vending machines, absently gathering more for his supply. He reaches his hand through the flap on the bottom to grab them when he notices something else on the ground next to it. A small white notecard with neat handwriting on one side. He picks it up to read it. 

_Niijima-senpai is desperate to find dirt on you, however, I believe she is still a good person. Someone is using her, and I think it’s the principal. Good people often do bad things when they’re desperate enough, and I don’t want to see her fall that far._

_I’ll owe you one,_

_~Rhyme ;D_

Akira’s a bit surprised they managed to drop this without him noticing. He’s even more surprised that Rhyme would even trust him with this issue. Their relation to each other is distant at best, and there’s tons of rumors going around that would immediately paint him as a bad person. From this note, he can tell that Niijima is probably a friend of theirs as well, so why trust him with helping her?

There’s a few options he can think of as to why. Rhyme might’ve heard something from their brother and then decided to trust him, they know what his personality is like for some other reason (Spying maybe? Nah, they don’t seem like the type to go _that_ far), or Rhyme knows he’s a Phantom Thief somehow. 

As he turns over the card, the last option seems more and more likely. The same cartoonish skull that decorates their beanie is hand-drawn on the middle of the back side. The words “For Akira” are also hand-drawn similar to the same type of lettering Ryuji had put on their calling card for Kamoshida. 

Well, shit. That’s too specific to be a coincidence. 

Akira knows that, as a group, the Phantom Thieves aren’t the greatest at keeping it secret. Mishima even found out pretty quickly. He knows this includes himself, but he had thought that his quiet nature would make up for it at least some. As far as he knows, he’s the only one Rhyme suspects, so hopefully he can keep it aimed only at himself. He has his doubts, though. 

Despite all that, is Akira seriously considering helping out Niijima, someone who’s actively working against him? Yes, the answer is yes. Having someone in the student council owe him a favor could be useful in the future, and his conscience would never leave him alone if he just let her be exploited. Either way, he’ll be talking about it with the rest sometime soon. 

He stops in his tracks when he hears a ringing in his ears, the familiar feeling of a presence he can’t exactly comprehend being present. 

_I am thou, thou art I... Thou hast acquired a new vow. It shall become the wings of rebellion that breaketh thy chains of captivity._

_With the grand creation of the Suit of Clubs, I have obtained the winds of blessing that shall grant knowledge as new power..._

The ringing dies down. A light sound, like a bell chime, signals the departure of the presence he felt. The first time this happened, he’d been panicked at first, but the chime of the bell always instills this great calm in him. He now knows what it means and can be comforted by this feeling.

There’s someone else out there who’s on his side. 

Akira leaves, spotting Ryuji and Ann leaning on the front gate, Morgana perched on the wall next to it. The three of them argue over something, including him in it as soon as he walks up. 

“Akira!” Ann says, grabbing him by the arm and dragging him to her side, “What do you think? We’re trying to decide if the walkway where we talked after the exhibit is good for our next hideout.”

Akira honestly doesn’t think that’s a good idea. Sure, if anyone comes across them they’d probably think they were just dumb highschoolers, but if someone ever listens in on their conversation their cover would be blown instantly. “I think it’d be fine if we all kept our voices down. But because we’re always dealing with, y’know, _difficult_ people, our emotions might get the better of us. We’ll probably need a more private place that’s somewhere we can gather easily.”

Once again, the other three look at him with something he can’t describe, before returning to normal conversation agreeing that maybe they can go somewhere else. Akira always wonders what that’s all about, their gaze didn’t feel _bad_ per se — they all looked oddly happy with themselves — but he still has no idea what it means. 

“Got any ideas, then?” Morgana sighs. 

Ann humms, deep in thought, “What about LeBlanc? We talked to Neku there and there wasn’t anyone to bother us.”

“That might not be such a bad idea…” Morgana nods, “What do you think, Akira?”

It would be fine, _except…_ “LeBlanc’s open in the day.”

“Oh, right. Boss probably only let us hang around because it was later. If we don’t decide on a place today, we’ll ask.”

“Well, my place doesn’t really work,” Ryuji sighs, leaning against the wall, “My ma’s home during the day most of the time, since she has the night shift. Besides, you said we need to meet up quick, right? It’s kinda out of the way for that.”

They look to Ann, completing the rotation of ideas. She thinks very hard for a moment, before her face lights up with an idea. “How about my parent’s studio? It’s a small backup one on the way to Shibuya from here. Since my parents are out of town, no one uses it and I’ve got a key.”

“Oh yeah,” Ryuji says, “Your parents are some big time designers, right?”

“Yup. Their work takes them all over the place, so we’ll be able to use it for a good while.”

“Are we going with that as our new hideout?” Morgana asks. The rest of them nod in response. 

Akira sees no problem with the newly decided hideout. Shifting his heavy bag, he leans slightly towards Ann, turning in the direction station and using his free hand to make a sort of “lead the way” gesture. 

Ann leads them through the streets with confident steps, even as they approach an area full of office-like buildings. She leads them to one of the slightly older looking buildings, leading them up the emergency stairwell to the roof.

“Uh, you sure this is the right way?” Ryuji asks with some nervousness in his voice as they climb up the stairs.

Ann rolls her eyes, “Would you rather walk through a bunch of judgmental office workers?”

“Ya got me there.”

There’s two parts of the roof, the part they reach when they get up above the offices, and a door leading to a large room on top of the building. Ann takes a key out of her pocket and opens the door, swinging it open wide and flipping on a switch to the side. 

The heavy shudders lift over big wide windows that give a breathtaking view of the city below. Packed up equipment for a photo shoot sits at one end of the room, a rolled up backdrop on that side as well. The other side is like its own apartment. The furniture isn’t sleek and modern as Akira would’ve thought, but looks comfortable from repeated use. There's an open kitchen, a long unused dining table, and a big flat-screen television in front of the couches. 

“So this is our new base, huh?” Morgana says, looking around appraisingly, “I gotta say, it’s way better than that school roof.”

“It’s _awesome!”_ Ryuji says excitedly. Akira can’t help but agree with the loud blond’s sentiment exactly. 

He walks over to the side with all the equipment, studying it from afar. He’s never been interested in model work or photo shoots. The most he knows is from watching the photographer take his picture at school and sitting through stifling family photos. Those aren’t exactly the happiest of memories in general, so he leans back, taking a large away from them. He finds Ann looking at him, but before he can ask, she turns away, flopping onto the couch and kicking out her feet on the table with a dramatic flare.

“Make yourselves at home,” Ann says, dumping her school bag next to herself on the couch. “The bathroom is down the stairs to the left, then head down the hall and you’ll see it. If you’re quick no one will see you.”

“You got it,” Ryuji says sitting next to her. Mona jumps out of his bag and onto the coffee table (Akira couldn’t fit him in his bag anymore) just as Akira finally decides to shove down his restlessness, stop looking around, and settle into the chair next to the couch. 

He leans back into the cushions, already making himself comfortable. “Thought it’d be more minimalist,” he observes. 

Ann shakes her head, “We’ve had this furniture since before my parents made it big. They’re still fine, so we dumped them in this studio. It’s barely used anyways.”

“I never got that whole look, y’know?” Ryuji runs a hand through his hair, “What’s the point of having money if you don’t have a lot of things? It’s pretty stupid, if you ask me.”

“To each their own, I suppose. Anyways, we should get right to business,” Morgana begins the meeting, “Currently we have Neku getting as much info on Madarame as he does his class project with Yusuke. Any information will surely benefit us in the palace.”

“About that. I know we’ll never know until we go in, but what will that info be good for?” Ann asks.

“You guys remember the times we were stopped by different locks and mechanisms in Kamoshida’s palace, right?” Morgana scratches behind his ear, “About half of those needed prior knowledge on the target to get past. Some of them we could just guess, but others we only got past due to your experience with him.”

Ryuji leans back on the couch, “So to keep going, we’re gonna need more dirt on him? Like names and stuff?”

“Most likely,” Morgana nods, “We may need faces or even items of importance to Madarame. If we get stuck in there because we simply don’t know enough we’ll be in bad shape. That’s how I got captured during my original investigation of Kamoshida. They were patrolling that area too.”

“So there may be more shadows around those parts of the palace,” Akira concludes, “We’ll need to be careful.”

“But it’s still the same thing as last time, yeah?” Ryuji shrugs, “We get a route to the treasure, send a calling card, then take his treasure.”

“Mostly the same,” Morgana nods, idly scratching behind his ear, “But even though we have some experience under our belts, we shouldn’t get too cocky. Unexpected things may still appear as we go through the palace. Is everyone prepared for that?”

Ann nods, her gaze as determined as the rest of theirs, “We have to do this, I don’t want to see anyone else exploited by Madarame.”

Ryuji pumps his fist up in the air, “Hell yeah! We’ll take that shitbag by surprise!”

Akira nods, “Any last-minute second thoughts?”

His question is only met with steady resolve, so he nods, “Then let’s do this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> listen i love rhyme with all my fucking heart okay they're baby but i also hc them as being the smartest one in any room they walk into 
> 
> the twewy kids have social links!! uh i mean confidants whatever. also ha i bet all of you thought akira’s first confidant with them would be neku but SIKE 
> 
> they’re a little different though, as they follow card suits, rather than the normal tarot arcana. and the ranks follow the rank of each card in a suit, I’ll keep track of them at the end of the notes.
> 
> also the suits have a little gimmick to them in order to start and advance them, hopefully as things continue some of you will catch onto it ;) 
> 
> also i thought that having a secret hideout in the middle of a busy walkway is dumb as shit so for these next two palaces we’ll have two different hideouts, which will be fun :D
> 
> that’s the end of things for now. i might have forgotten to mention something but whatev
> 
> Confidants:  
> Rhyme — 2 of Clubs  
> ????  
> ????  
> ????


	7. “Good At That”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on TGSH:  
> akira: *does a freaky golden eye thing in the middle of class for Scientific Purposes*  
> rhyme, later: hey my friend and also fellow student council member is being forced to low key high key stalk you and your friends  
> rhyme: also i know youre a phantom thief u ain’t slick  
> akira: *surprised pikachu face*  
> CONFIDANT ACQUIRED
> 
> And now back to the dead kids and thieves:   
> Neku finds that the Phantom Thieves need help with a door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello everyone its me again! back at it again with all this. i’ll be here at the end of the chapter to over-explain my exact thoughts writing this.
> 
> but for now, enjoy

Despite having such vague ground to build from, Neku thinks he’s doing pretty well at gathering information. After receiving a text from Ann about what they may need, he was able to get the names of three past students of Madarame, as well as a general idea of what they decided to do after they left. 

After their previous session of working on their project ended with zero progress, they decided to switch to Neku’s dorm. Kosei is a _very_ well off school, so the co-ed dorms are very spacious and nice, if a bit loud (lucky for Neku, he saved up enough to put up some sound-proof padding on the walls of a small room off to the side if he needed a place to focus). 

Though, they didn’t actually start again until yesterday. The day after that whole incident occurred, Yusuke had told him that he was busy. Despite the fact that this was a totally valid excuse, Neku couldn’t help but think back to the moment that Madarame had said something quietly to Yusuke. Even without any proof of that being the cause, he decided to buy him lunch for the day just in case. 

Alongside the previous reason for moving their work to the dorm, Neku had a different motive. He’s been starting to notice how differently Yusuke talks when he’s away from Madarame, so he thought that maybe it would be easier on him. 

As it turns out, he made the right choice. Three days after their first attempt and not only does Neku finally get some information, they’re able to actually get some progress on their project.

Brainstorming ideas with Yusuke narrows down their theme to one topic: humanity, or more simply, people. The specific characteristic they want to focus on is harder to decide. Probably because Neku’s focus on the project has definitely decreased. 

Maybe once this whole thing is all over he’ll be able to completely focus on the project, but as it stands, there’s no way Neku’s putting some school project over his friend’s safety. Especially since the work will be more spread out as soon as they have their topic down. 

But life still goes on, and unfortunately he has other schoolwork to do. In between keeping Yusuke out of the house and his usual schedule, homework has been on the backburner and probably will be for a while. Missing even a singular day could mess things up, as being called away from school for a week at a time does _not_ help his productivity. 

His worst subject is history. Not that learning cool facts isn’t fun, but the paperwork is just so boring to get through that some days he ends up falling asleep while trying to work on it.

Today is one of those days. After waking up from the brief three minute doze, he decides to take a break. 

He hears his phone ping with a notification across the room. Getting up, he picks it up off the chair where he left it charging. It’s a message from Ann. 

**Takamaki**

_Hey_

_Are you busy rn?_

_not really_

_why?_

_Can you meet with us?_

_Theres something blocking us in the palace and we need to get around it_

_blocking?_

_you mean you cant steal his heart as is?_

_Not w/o some big real-world stuff_

_and you’ll need me for that_

_huh_

Neku pauses. He’s still a little annoyed that they didn’t let him help out in the metaverse or whatever, just a little. But they seemed to have some real concerns about what might happen to him if he stayed for too long, so he can’t really argue (not without mentioning that he’s not entirely a normal human being and it might not affect him the same). 

But maybe he could use this as an opportunity to prove that he could help. That he could gain their trust (or at least some of it). He didn’t need to read their thoughts to tell that they didn’t trust him completely, and he can’t exactly blame them for it. 

_okay fine_

_where and when?_

_Can you head over now?_

He looks over to his barely touched history homework and shakes his head. Anything to not have to deal with _that._

_sure_

_Here’s the address to the hideout_

Neku receives the location, packing away all his work. He decides not to change out of his school uniform despite the fact Shiki and Eri have hammered it into his brain that presentation is the most important for people he doesn’t know well (what’s even the point if they don’t know him?). 

After making sure he has everything he needs (including extra pins, depending on how this meeting ends), he grabs his keys and bag and opens the door to the dorm hallway. 

Surprisingly enough, the hall is quiet. The usual noises coming from the lounge area downstairs is very little. All he can really hear is a TV playing and the rustling of papers.

Coming downstairs he sees one of his older dorm mates (he remembers her introducing herself only as Neyume) sleeping on the couch. At the lounge chair next to the couch, the other upperclassman (Maizono-san, the scarier of the two) puts a silent finger to her lips as she flips through what he assumes is schoolwork. 

Making a conscious attempt to not make a sound, Neku makes his way to the front door. As he opens it he sees the familiar face of one of his classmates, Kishimoto, about to open the door himself. At the sight of Neku, he promptly ignores him and brushes past him inside.

That brief interaction could’ve gone worse. They used to be somewhat friends and, as most interactions with people went before the Game, Neku said something dickish to him and now he has a grudge. 

That type of situation happened a lot during his third year of middle school. He had pushed away the few classmates he was on friendly enough terms with at the time, and now any he goes to school with now are unwilling to talk to him.

But none of them matter anymore, now that he has friends. What’s in the past should stay there. He’s got to live in the moment, right?

Neku’s thoughts are shaken out of his head just as he spies a familiar face near some vending machines. Speaking of friends…

Before he could even call out to him, Beat turns to look up at him, almost dropping all the drinks he’s holding in an attempt to wave.

“Hey,” Neku greets as he walks over, “Let me hold some of those before you drop them.”

“Thanks, man,” Beat says, handing some over, “Don’t you usually stay after school today?”

Neku blinks for a moment, then realizes what he’s talking about. There are times when he stays after school to collect his work for the next week, since he won’t be there. 

“No, that’s on some Saturdays. It’s not a weekly thing,” He responds, glancing down to the four fruity and/or carbonated drinks he’s holding, “What’s up with all of these?”

Beat starts packing away the ones he’s holding (which is about two times the amount he let Neku carry) into his bag. “These’re for Rhyme. Our folks are lettin’ us move out soon and they’re the one who did all that convincin’ stuff. Felt bad for not doin’ nothing, so I got their favorite drinks.”

“Where are you guys going?” Neku asks, handing over the drinks he’s holding to be put away, “Does Shujin have dorms?”

“Nah,” Beat picks up his skateboard, which was leaning against the machine. They start walking in the direction Neku was already headed. “Found some cheap apartment that I’mma help pay for.”

“Wait, you have to help pay for it?” 

“Part of the deal with our parents, man. If it was just Rhyme, it’d be different. But they wanna make sure I’m bein’ responsible or some shit like that,” He shrugs, like he’s used to it. “Didn’t feel like arguin’ about it, so…”

Keeping his gaze carefully on Beat, Neku nods. He himself isn’t close to his parents to even _have_ an argument, but he can’t help but empathize with him in some ways. _Sometimes you just don't want to put effort into something you won’t win._

And besides, their whole friend group has been helping keep the Bito siblings from having to interact with their parents for a while now. If this arrangement keeps them away, then they can call that a win and all try to help out a different way.

“So,” Neku starts, deciding that now’s the time to change the subject, “Are these drinks all you’re going to get Rhyme? We could go pick out some snacks to go with them.”

Beat’s hand smacks his forehead, like he forgot about something. “Snacks! ‘Course they need snacks, _duh._ Yo, let’s go to that place around the corner. Haven’t been there, but Shiki said somethin’ about it.”

Neku glanced at the time on his phone, ignoring the familiarity of the action. He can make this quick, and it’s fine if the Phantom Thieves wait a few extra minutes. _It’s not like they could tell how far away I was._

He follows as Beat leads him to whatever snack store that he knows about. He finds himself picking a few interesting flavors out for himself by the time they’ve finished finding ones for Rhyme.

When they part ways, Beat is skating off with a very obviously full bag. 

Not too much later, Neku approaches some nondescript looking office building. He’s not sure if this is where he’s supposed to be, despite the address matching the one Ann sent him. He decides to send her a text that he’s here anyways. 

_I’ll meet you around the back_

He’s not sure what to think about that shady as hell response, so he just shrugs, following her directions. _I guess they call themselves thieves for a reason._

Ann is leaning on the wall just around the corner, waving when she sees him. “Hey Neku! Follow me, we’re on the roof.”

She leads him up the fire escape, telling him about her parents renting the room on the top as a backup studio. Out of all the secret hideout locations Neku thought that this vigilante group could have, he never actually considered anything this realistic. _Duh,_ he thinks to himself, _why wouldn’t they just use a place they already have access to? This isn’t some fantasy._

When Ann opened the door to the studio Neku found that he was the last one there. He only gets a brief chance to look around and admire the view through the window before sitting down. 

“So,” Neku starts, “What did you all need me for? Something about a blockade?”

“There’s this door in the palace that won’t open,” Ryuji starts, “Most doors have somethin’ we can use to open it, like how that info you gave us helped us match up some paintings in there. Or some key we find lyin’ around. But there was nothing like that when we checked.”

Ann nods, “We ended up sending Morgana in yesterday to look and see if there was a matching one outside the palace.” She holds out her phone, showing a slightly blurry, tilted, floor-level photo of a door with some sort of peacock pattern on it. A very large industrial lock hangs off of it, interestingly enough. 

“Wait, _you_ took this picture?” Neku looks at the cat. 

Morgana sits taller from his seat on the coffee table, “And? What about it?”

“I never—” He suddenly realizes that he’s about to say the wrong thing here as Akira sends him a helpful look over Morgana's head. “I just thought it was pretty impressive.”

“I’m glad _someone_ recognizes my skill,” He doesn’t know how, but the cat looks smug as he continues the explanation, “The fact that the door from his cognition exists in real life means that he thinks of it as unopenable. If we wanna go forward, we’ll have to change that.”

Neku nods. He can see where this is going. They’ll need him to open it or something in front of Madarame so they can get in. “Alright, so how are we going to open it?”

Ryuji scratches the back of his head. “We have all our ideas down, but you’re pretty much the big part we don’t get.”

“Yeah,” Ann agrees, “After we came to the conclusion about how to open the door, we decided that our best bet was to ask you to do it. Another option is to have me take up Yusuke’s modeling offer.”

“I’ll do it, if that’s what you need to know,” Neku says, “Yusuke knows me better than you, Ann, and I’ve already met Madarame formally.”

“That’s great,” Akira nods. “Makes this a lot easier.”

Morgana gets to his feet, stretching, “Since that’s all decided, let’s get into with the details of the plan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me: i keep dropping hints that neku’s the Conductor  
> me, writing: neku’s the Conductor 
> 
> okay so plot-wise i know not much happens but this is some setup stuff and also i FINALLY figured out how to write beat’s dialogue without it sounding really fucking weird. 
> 
> (i could go on a rant on how the localization team made his speech patterns AAVE (african american vernacular english) to make him look dumb and yet they also did a shitty job (seriously reading his dialogue makes no sense bc AAVE does in fact have grammar) i could go on and on okay)
> 
> i realized that only two chapters i have written so far Dont mention Rhyme like hahah oops i wonder who my fav is. also don’t worry about what i meant by That door. just a reference...
> 
> also me?? getting beat and rhyme the hell away from their shitty parents??? you bet your sweet bippy. in-game beat mentions that he’s actually pretty chill when he’s not under life-threatening conditions, and i have a feeling that all our former Players act a bit differently than we see them during the game, so i hope that comes across in any parts including them 
> 
> cool stuff next chap, please look forward to it!
> 
> am i done yet? i think so?? alright see yall later, hope you enjoyed!


	8. "See A Problem"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on TGSH:
> 
> The author projects onto Neku as he uses any excuse to not do his history homework, including helping out some thieves with their B&E. It is super effective! Kinda. Also Beat is there for a bit.
> 
> And now back to dead kid(s) and thieves (batteries sold separately):  
> Neku helps the Phantom Thieves open a door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This is a two part chapter, in which the second half will be posted a few days after. Enjoy this while it lasts, because I'm back in school babey and that means creative exhaustion time.
> 
> Now I leave!

Neku’s gaze is aimed down the street, where the run-down looking atelier stands. 

While making their plan yesterday, they all decided to meet up beforehand. They’re all far enough that they can’t be seen from the building, but close enough to easily access the palace. 

This may be the last time he ever steps foot in that place, hopefully. And soon, Yusuke won't have to either.

“Do we need to go over the plan again?” Ryuji asks. 

“Not really,” Ann replies, brushing one of her pigtails back over her shoulder, “You, Akira, and I are going into the palace while Neku and Mona are in charge of the door. That’s it, right?”

“Right,” Akira nods, looking around the group, “Everyone ready?”

With a round of nods and a chime in from Morgana, who peeks his head out of Neku’s dark blue art bag, the operation begins. 

“The coast clear?” Ryuji asks looking around. Neku scans the area mentally for onlookers, carefully avoiding the minds of the others. He’s made a habit of trying not to read people’s minds, especially people he knows (He can practically envision Joshua rolling his eyes at him. _Not everyone likes invading the privacy of other people for no reason, thanks.)_

With a confirmation of the area being clear, he starts walking off towards the shack. He decides to glance back at a decent range, just in time to see the three Phantom Thieves disappear into thin air. 

There’s a surprising difference between watching them go into the metaverse and watching someone enter the Underground. It’s actually jarring, in Neku’s opinion. 

Watching someone go into the UG is only unnatural up close, with their body gone in a flash and a pleasant buzz ( _Pleasant?_ Since when the hell has he thought of it that way?). But it’s different from further away. In Shibuya especially, they’re gone in a blink, gone with the shifting of the crowd or the passing of a car. Something always aids their disappearance. A person blocking the view, a door closing. Shibuya itself goes out of its way to hide those who want to be hidden, specifically those of the UG. 

To Neku, it feels like a sort of protection. Not to be amongst the clash of ideas for a moment, but to see them from an outside perspective. A shield against finding yourself lost or overwhelmed. 

The metaverse is much different than that. Fading out of reality, disappearing like you were never there in the first place? Warping the very air around you to mask any trace, any sign, that you once existed in that space? It feels wrong. The fact that you lived and breathed and thought and felt in that very spot is erased. Gone. 

There’s something about that which unnerves him to his core. Something about the metaverse and how it treats those who traverse it. It doesn’t hide your disappearance for protection, but for deceit. Maybe for reasons worse than that. 

It’s nothing like Shibuya. 

“One hell of a magic trick,” he mutters under his breath, continuing on. Morgana shifts in his art bag impatiently.

Yusuke greets him at the door. There's an oddly troubled look on his face, but he speaks before Neku can comment. “I’m grateful you asked to meet up when you did. I feel close to a breakthrough, but I’ll need your help to refine my idea.”

The two of them had agreed to space out their meetings once they finally settle on a solid theme, for their schedules’ sake. Though Neku isn’t sure what the result of today will be, or if either of them will really be able to focus on the project after it. 

He follows his friend inside, walking a bit slower and dragging out the conversation. “I’ll try to offer ideas where I can. I think I wrote some down during class yesterday, so we can go over those too.”

There’s a small pause as Yusuke stops, just outside the room they used last time. Neku stops with him, curiously looking up at him, “What’s up?”

“It’s nothing,” Yusuke replies, walking into the room at a brisk pace, leaving him standing in the doorway. “You seem normal today.”

“Normal-?” Neku’s cut off by the sound he was waiting for. His phone vibrates in his bag, accompanied by a loud beeping tune. “Oh, sorry.”

Carefully placing his art bag down out of view from the doorway, Neku twists to dig around in his school bag. As he exaggerates his looking for his phone, he pretends not to notice Morgana slipping out of his other bag. 

In truth, he’s still not too sure about taking the cat with him. Yusuke had said that Madarame would keep to his own room so as not to distract them, but that didn’t completely guarantee Morgana not being caught too early. Said cat did assure him that his Phantom Thief skills would not get him caught, but Neku was still unsure of how those tiny paws were supposed to unlock a door. But the cat has shown surprising dexterity so far, so maybe things will be fine?

Neku takes out his phone and turns off the alarm. “Sorry, I must’ve set my alarm to the wrong day. What were you saying?” 

“Do not concern yourself over it,” Yusuke waves him off, “I was merely thinking aloud.”

While he absolutely does not buy that, Neku’s not going to push it further. “Alright then,” he says, taking a seat, “When you brought up the theme ‘humanity,’ what were you mainly thinking of? Like social commentary and politics, philosophy, something else?”

“I was personally thinking along the philosophical approach,” Yusuke’s face settles into a look of deep concentration. “However that is the kind of topic I would usually focus on. It’s similar to my own personal project, in fact.”

“So is your ‘breakthrough’ about trying something new?” Neku asks. 

“Indeed. I was inspired by observing other artwork in class, since it differs so much from mine. But I reached a conclusion earlier,” Yusuke nods like he just confirmed something, “Would it be okay to base some of our ideas off of your own artwork? As this is about real-life events and not the type of subjects I usually paint, I think it would be best for me to learn your approach.”

His own art, huh? Neku can agree that there are some major differences in their art, but the most important is in how they both approach it. From what he knows, Yusuke looks to express something specific with each piece. But unless it’s a big project like this one, Neku’s never put much thought in the message he wants to convey beyond what’s happening in the moment. Perhaps that’s because of his inspiration from CAT, or maybe that’s just the way he is now. 

Usually Neku would be contributing even more to the brainstorming part of a project like this, but since he’s been dealing with the Phantom Thieves as well, he had decided to let Yusuke take the lead. _Looks like that plan is out._

“I don’t see a problem with that—”

Neku’s cut off by a noisy clatter coming from outside the room. Oh thank goodness, Morgana’s got the lock open. He didn’t know what he would say about his art bag not actually having all his supplies in it. 

“Wait, what was that?” Neku stands up, peeking out the doorway. 

Yusuke also stands, “It’s probably just Sensei. He may have simply knocked something over in his room.”

“Uh huh,” Neku says, not caring enough to keep the skepticism out of his voice. “Isn’t his room in the other direction?”

Yusuk considers this, “Well—” 

“I’m gonna check it out.” Neku steps quickly out of the room, following the directions Morgana had given him earlier to a hallway he’s never been in. 

“Hey, wait!” He hears Yusuke call after him.

When he gets there, he finds the door open like he expected. Morgana peers up at him, “Well? Is Madarame coming?”

“Not yet,” Neku glances back.

“What if you try causing a scene?” the cat suggests, “How good are you at acting?” 

Causing a scene? Neku can think of a way to do that. “I don’t think I’ll need to act.”

Yusuke comes into sight from around the corner.“Hold on, Sensei doesn’t want you wandering—”

“Yeah, yeah. Hey, what’s in here?” Neku asks, cutting him off and changing the subject. He doesn’t actually want to be rude, but he knows he’s good at it. 

“It’s just a storage area for old paintings,” he replies, his eyebrows furrowed. “One must’ve fallen, that’s all. Let us return.”

Neku doesn’t move. The door did have a big lock on it, so maybe… “Guess I should go put it back up then.”

“W-What?” Yusuke looks up, like the idea is too baffling to take seriously. _Huh, so I was right._ “No, that room is off-limits.”

“But it’s just a stupid storage room, right? Why is it important enough to be off limits?” Neku takes a few steps backwards, like he’s about to try and go in.

“It doesn’t matter,” Yusuke quickly responds, “Only Sensei can go in there.”

Cocking his head toward the room, Neku stays skeptical, “Only he can go in there? Doesn’t that sound like a little more than storage? Like he’s hiding something?”

He watches as Yusuke’s whole demeanor shifts. _There it is._ Now he’s made him mad. 

“What are you implying about Sensei?” He takes a few steps toward Neku. _Almost there, just one more step and he’ll see it._

“What do you think?” Neku crosses his arms. He knows nothing he’s said so far has been particularly pleasant, but he has to do it. He’s sensed Madarame close by for a while now, listening in but not stepping in. He must really think that door is unopenable, so he’s just being nosy. 

_Sorry Yusuke._ “There’s something he isn’t telling you, and it sure as hell isn’t for your own good.”

“You're making baseless assumptions!” Yusuke’s voice rises a little. Neku hears the shuffling of Madarame at the edge of his hearing. Fucking _finally._

“Then prove me wrong,” Neku walks toward the room.

“You can’t go in there!” Yusuke follows, “Besides, the door’s… what?”

“What are you doing there?” Madarame’s stern voice comes from down the hallway. The man stops, his eyes widen upon seeing the door open, before narrowing in a glare. “What did I tell you about letting your friend wander?” 

“S-Sensei…” 

Neku's unable to really listen to whatever is said next, as the sight before him confuses the hell out of him. The room is full of different size canvases, some too tall or too small for the image repeated across each and every one of them — Sayuri.

“The hell…?” Neku finds himself saying when he comes back to himself, connecting the dots and not liking where it leads. “What’s going on here?”

Yusuke turns around, his eye seeming to catch a glance of one of the paintings laying in the outside light. He quickly steps into the room, reaching up and turning on the light. 

“What the…!?” he stands still in shock.

“There’s tons of them…” Neku says, unable to keep from looking around at all of them. The amount is an even greater number than he originally thought. 

“Get out!” Madarame’s harsh voice cuts through both of their shock.

“Sensei, what is the meaning of this…?” Yusuke asks in bewilderment. 

Madarame schools his expression into one of great regret, but Neku doesn’t buy it. “I suppose I can’t keep quiet, now that you’ve seen this.”

When he begins going into the whole story of making the replica Sayuris, Neku can’t help but think he’s lying. He says he’s in debt, but also that he’s using the money to further Yusuke’s work? Who would buy these counterfeits? What did he even base them off of, if Sayuri was stolen? Yusuke may be convinced, but Neku isn’t.

“Psst, Neku! This one seems different.” Morgana hides behind one of the shelves, motioning to the covered painting in the center of the room with his head. Right, there's that too.

Neku glances at Madarame. “Yeah, right. I’m calling bullshit on that. What the hell are you talking about? None of what just came out of your mouth follows any sort of logic.”

Madarame’s face clouds with anger once again, “What would _you_ know!?”

He decides not to respond to him, instead locking eyes with Yusuke and gesturing towards the covered painting. “He’s been lying to _you,_ Yusuke, not me. If you want to know the truth behind what's really going on, you do the honors.”

Neku relishes in Madarame’s wide eyes when Yusuke glances at him suspiciously, before he pulls the cover off with only a moment of hesitation.

“Sayuri…?” Yusuke studies the painting closely, “This… This is the real Sayuri! But you just said a moment ago that it was stolen!”

“T-That’s a replica!” Madarame is quick to claim. Which is stupid, because any respectable art nerd would be able to tell the difference, especially with a painting _this_ famous.

“No, it’s nothing of the sort!” Yusuke shoots him down. “This painting kept me going… It’s the reason I made it this far…”

Neku doesn't like that he has to see his friend look so dejected, but this is important. All he can do is offer support.

“Sensei…” Yusuke speaks again, “Don’t tell me…”

“It’s fake…” Madarame tries that excuse again, “Yes, a counterfeit! I heard there was a counterfeit spreading around, so I bought it!”

 _…Okay, now that’s some bullshit._ What kind of idiots does he take them for? 

“Why the hell would a renowned artist buy a counterfeit of his own piece?” Neku rolls his eyes, “Sounds fake but okay.”

“You’re lying, Sensei…” Yusuke says with certainty, “Please, just tell us the truth.”

That unfortunately seems to be the last straw because Madarame’s apparently reported them to some security company. _Well, shit._

“Wait!” Yusuke tries, “Let’s talk about this—”

But it’s no use. When Morgana helpfully suggests that they run, Neku gets the hell out of there because he does _not_ want to get arrested today. 

“We can escape into the metaverse!” Morgana suggests while Neku hurriedly grabs his bags, “I can take you with me!”

“Then let’s go, quick!”

Just before he began feeling the weird sensation of going into the metaverse, Neku sees Yusuke run into the room after him. He knows from an unfortunate experience that the distance he’s at is close enough to be dragged in with them.

Fuck. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well that's that! no funny haha nude model scene thing bc i do what i want. if you look closely you can see the exact moment i went off on a tangent about how it looks to go into the UG vs the metaverse bc i was super fascinated by the possibilities. 
> 
> neku was a little rude to yusuke for his own good and probably feels bad about it, but i hc that even tho he's changed he's still good at being rude when he needs to be bc he's still making snide comments in his head. I still have trouble with scenes that copy the game almost exactly bc doing it word for word tires me out to hell and back so i have to shake it up a little (i didn't want to just give neku ann's lines yk?)
> 
> is that it for explaining the creative process of this chapter?? i think so
> 
> then it's time for the announcement!
> 
> i'm not sure if i said otherwise in a different chapter (i dont feel like looking back to see if i did) but i changed my mind again! 
> 
> i am NOT including any of p5r in this! no new characters or social links, no nothing. i may be pulling of aspects of characters that were showcased more in p5r than in the vanilla game because i'm a dirty thief who steals the things i want, but nothing spoilery at all. however, even though this is following vanilla p5 (with canon divergence bc of twewy), haru WILL get some fucking screen time.
> 
> however, i have Ideas for how this story could work with p5r, with some changes to the twewy side as well (like an au of an au, if that makes any sense?). so if any of you are interested, i might upload that after i eventually finish this fic (which i really hope i will do! i really like it!!!)
> 
> that's all, so..... later


	9. "Keep In Line"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on TGSH:
> 
> Neku: hey no offense but I think Madarame is hiding shit from you  
> Yusuke: you're lying!  
> Madarame: *is really bad at hiding something*  
> Yusuke: this is so embarrassing to watch that you might actually have a point
> 
> And now back to the Dead Kid and the Criminals (band name undecided):  
> The PT witnesses the awakenings of a new future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhello there! this wasnt supposed to come out so long after the last chapter but oh well i guess! 
> 
> enjoy! ;)

The weird nausea Neku is currently feeling might be because he just got pulled into the metaverse. Or it could be because he's falling.

Wait. He's _falling!?_

Alarm ignites through Neku as he grabs an arm of both Morgana and Yusuke, trying to slow their few-second fall with his wings. 

This works! …For the most part. Neku’s able to successfully land as safely as he can (which means he trips and lands face first into the ground while the other two stumble upon landing).

“Are you all okay?” he hears someone ask as he sits up. He's not sure who, since the sudden headache makes it hard to focus. It’s just like the last time he went into the metaverse, with the weird way the world felt and shifted around him, but about three times worse. 

“Maybe?” He answers, eyes closed as he attempts to power through the throbbing in his head. 

Once the headache dies down a bit, he takes the opportunity to stretch out his wings. It’s not often that he remembers to be consciously aware of them enough to actually move them. He runs a mental check for anything that might be wrong, other than the obvious feeling the world around him gives him in general. Seems like the only thing that got hurt when he tripped was his pride. 

Everyone’s looking at him. _Does it look weird to stretch out something people can’t see?_

“Neku, who are these people?” Yusuke asks, curiously looking around. 

“It’s me, Kitagawa-kun!” Ann says, shifting her mask up so he can see her face. 

He looks at her with wide eyes as she puts her mask back on. “T-Takamaki-san? Then you two are…” He trails off, then glances at Morgana, “I don’t recall ever seeing this cat costume before though…”

Neku gets up, dusting himself off. He offers him a hand, “I guess you’d want to know what’s going on here, right?” He wouldn’t blame him for that. Falling out of the sky into a weird place where most of the people around you are wearing odd clothes? From Akira’s long coat that reminds him of an anime antagonist, to Ryuji’s plated outfit and intimidating skull mask, to Ann’s enviable biker jacket and leather red pants, Neku is absolutely sure that those three would need an explanation to show up _anywhere._

Allowing himself to be helped up, Yusuke agrees, “Yes… I think knowing where we exactly are would be helpful.”

Shrugging, Neku turns to the rest, wincing as his head hurts with the movement, “They’d be able to explain it much better than I can.”

The three of them look at each other, but Ann Speaks first, “We’re inside Madarame’s heart.”

Yusuke blinks, looking around, “Inside… Sensei’s heart? I-I’m sorry, Takamaki-san… but are you sure you’re feeling alright?”

“She ain’t lying,” Ryuji steps in, “This is what that bastard truly feels. He’s nothin’ but a greed-filled money-grubber.”

Yusuke glares, lashing out in retaliation. _“Enough_ of this rubbish—” 

“Yusuke,” Neku says, trying to give a comforting smile when Yusuke’s glare turns to him. He’s not used to that look on his friend’s face, much less aimed at him. “Just hear them out for a moment, alright?”

Yusuke doesn’t respond, but when he looks back at the group of Thieves, Ann takes the opportunity to jump in. 

“Kitagawa-kun, didn’t it cross your mind that something wasn’t right about Madarame?”

“That’s…”

“You may not want to believe it, but this is another reality as viewed through Madarame’s eyes.” She gestures to the world around her, “...This is his _true_ nature.”

Yusuke goes quiet, looking at the world around him in closer detail. Neku stands by silently as well, giving him room to come to terms with all of it himself. He can understand what he must be going through. After all, having to accept that the person who is supposed to love and raise you is actually not as good of a human being as you thought is difficult, especially if you’ve been fooling yourself for so long.

Neku frowns. It’s best not to linger on _that_ topic, or else it’ll give him a worse headache.

“I have a hard time accepting what you all say as the truth,” Yusuke starts, “But if it is… If this repulsive place truly represents him, then the Sensei I’ve come to know doesn’t actually exist.”

“So you’ve snapped out of it?” Ryuji asks.

Yusuke shakes his head, “If I’m being honest, I wouldn’t normally believe you three and find you completely untrustworthy.” 

“Talk about harsh, man.”

“Though I am thankful for Sensei allowing me to live with him for so long… Earlier, when I heard the same thing about him from someone I trust, I felt like maybe I have been wrong.” He pauses, closing his eyes and taking deep breaths. 

“Hey,” Neku steps toward him, “You okay?”

“Just overwhelming emotions,” Yusuke sighs, still doing deep breathing exercises, “Nothing to worry about.”

The weird world around him pulses, making Neku wince as his headache flares more. Glancing away from Yusuke, he sees Akira looking around, eyes flashing a pale yellow. Neku’s about the comment on it when he takes a confident step forward, “We need leave.”

“Right,” Morgana nods _(It’s like a bobble head,_ Neku thinks idly), “There’s no time to stick around here. The security level’s gone through the roof, so let’s get out of here!”

After making sure Yusuke’s alright, they all start on the way back to the entrance.

Since Neku hasn’t been in much of the palace, much of the sickening museum is new to him as well. After they explain them, he pays more attention to the paintings — _cognitions_ — around him. There’s something about the distorted paintings of countless students, all so similar to another. Like Madarame didn't care enough to distinguish between them before using them.

Yusuke seems unnerved by it too, as he stops before a student’s piece that’s slightly larger than the others. The frame is also different, an actual design carved into the wood. 

Ann sees his silent staring and explains, “This was one of the three paintings we had to change the plaques for to move on. Most of these just have names, but for some reason these have different professions on them.”

Neku glances at said plaque, recognizing both the name and the profession stated. _That was part of the info I got from Yusuke._

“Sensei, he…” Yusuke starts, “He talks about how Arima-san is doing, sometimes. Her and two others. When they were each still under his mentorship, he often said how they were some of his most promising pupils. I used to be jealous of them.”

Neku doesn’t comment on the “used to” part. Instead, he wonders aloud, “Do you think he’s keeping tabs on them all?”

“I… That might be true,” Yusuke says reluctantly. “Sensei’s always on the phone with someone or other when I hear him mention them.”

Neku grimaces, he can’t expect that to mean anything good. 

The group continues on until they reach a new room. A golden sculpture sits in the middle, so shiny and gaudy that it immediately attracts Neku’s attention. It looks like some sort of spring, with people captured within its water. _It’s like they’re drowning…_

Neku has no time to linger on it, as he feels everything around him _pulse._ Two guards rise up out of the ground, blocking the exit they were heading to. Something in the air changes. The world around him feels tense and oppressive, constricting even. It’s coming from _behind them_ , he quickly realizes just as a distorted laugh comes from the same direction.

They all turn to see an elaborately dressed Madarame, his eyes gleaming gold.

“What the—” Ann gasps.

Ryuji scoffs, “Talk about bullshit clothes! First a king, now some kind of shogun?”

So this is what Madarame’s shadow looks like, based on what the Thieves had explained. It isn’t a good look, that’s for sure. 

“Welcome to the museum of the master artist Madarame…”

“S-Sensei?” Yusuke questions from next to him, “Is that you? That attire… This has to be a misunderstanding!”

Neku stays quiet as Madarame looks like he’s going to break the truth to Yusuke all by himself. “My usual rugged attire is nothing but an act. Besides, a famous person living in that shack? I have another home… under a mistress’s name, of course.”

Behind him, Akira scoffs in disgust, “Some setup you’ve got.”

The palace ruler’s distorted laugh rings out once again, “Don’t make me laugh, boy.”

At that, Yusuke begins to question him, still holding onto everything even when the truth is right in front of him. Neku knows for a fact that he isn’t going to like those answers. 

He’s proven correct, as Madarame himself admits that the painting being stolen was all a farce to get more money selling the copies privately. That truth seems to drive Yusuke to his knees and the rest to his side.

Madarame doesn’t blink at his pupil’s distress, “The value of art is purely an illusion. What’s the matter with providing that illusion to eager customers?”

Every time Madarame speaks Neku wants to bang his head on a wall. “Plenty of artists do art for the sake of it. Hell, even CAT’s famous and they still do free murals for causes they support. Things like that are what gives art value, not your shitty scams.”

Madarame turns toward him, like his golden gaze is just noticing him. “If it isn’t the Sakuraba boy. I should’ve known you had it in with these _thieves,”_ he spits out, “I’m disappointed. By the way Yusuke had talked about you, you would’ve made a good contribution to my collection. But you couldn’t keep in line.”

Neku pales. He feels like he wants to puke, and it isn’t just from the oppressive air around Madarame growing stronger. _He doesn’t mean…_ His headache turns into more of a migraine as the world pulses around him strangely, not unlike a heartbeat. He’s had worse, so he tries to keep focused. 

Ryuji steps forward when he sees that Neku’s fallen silent, “What the hell is that supposed to mean!?”

Madarame ignores him. “…I’ll tell you both one thing. If you wish to succeed in this world, I’d advise you don’t rise against me,” the bastard says, _laughing_ at the idea of their misfortune, “Do you believe anyone could find success with my objection holding them down?”

“To think…” Yusuke shudders, “To think I lived under the care of such a wretched man.”

“What, did you think I took you in out of the goodness of my heart?” the man smirks, “Plucking talented, yet troubled artists allows me to find promising pupils and take their ideas. After all, it’s much easier to steal the futures of children who can’t fight back.”

“You’re terrible!” Ann shouts, “How could you do this to them!?”

“Livestock are killed for their hide and meat! This is no different—”

“You are unforgivable,” Yusuke cuts him off. “It doesn’t matter what face you wear, I won’t forgive you!”

Yusuke rises as Madarame tries to speak once again, but he doesn’t let him get the chance. “How amusing… It seems the truth has proven to be stranger than fiction, hasn’t it?”

Neku pushes through enough to give a worried glance to him, “Yusuke…?”

“I wanted to believe it wasn’t true. I had clouded my vision for so long…” he continues, “But if freeing a friend from a future under your tyranny means accepting the amount of cruelty I have faced, then I will be blind no longer!” 

Almost immediately following Yusuke’s declaration, the weird air and migraine dissipates so fast that Neku almost stumbles from the whiplash. He would have, if not for seeing his friend clutch his head in pain. 

“Yusuke—!” Neku’s cut off by an arm held in front of him. He looks up at Akira, who is watching the scene with a knowing gaze.

“He’ll be more than fine,” is the only reassurance he gets.

With a burst of blue flame, a mask appears on Yusuke’s face. _Pay attention,_ something within Neku whispers to him, _Watch closely._

With a bloody flourish, Yusuke rips off the mask. “Come, Goemon!”

He almost looks away as Yusuke bursts into flames, but as they clear, he sees his friend dressed in a different outfit. Oh and also there’s also a really powerful figure _towering_ behind him what the _hell._ It fits the description he was given of a persona. Is this how they get one? _That’s actually pretty epic._

Yusuke holds his hand out in a dramatic pose, making Neku grin. His friend’s tendency to be overly dramatic can seem weird to other people, but he’s met more dramatic people and they were more annoying than endearing. Besides, after all of _that,_ anyone deserves to be a little extra. As a treat.

“A breathtaking sight…” Yusuke begins, “Imitations they may be, but together, they make a fine spectacle. Though the flowers of evil blossom, be it known… Abominations are fated to _perish!”_

A blast of frigid air rushes at the guards, freezing them until they shatter. 

Neku’s eyes widen, “Holy fucking shit…”

Unfortunately, Madarame somehow just waves it off. “Who do you think you are!? The price of your insolence will be death! Where are my guards? Kill them all!”

Four guards burst from the ground at his command. Even with the little amount of tools he has, Neku prepares himself for a fight. He’s not sure what he can do without his pins (Joshua does always complain that he thinks too much like a Player, so maybe his reliance on pins is finally coming back to bite him in the ass), but he’s gonna do all he can.

“All of those children who adored you as ‘father’… The prospects of your pupils…” Yusuke takes a step forward, “How many did you trample upon? How many more dreams would you exchange for riches? No matter what it takes… I will bring you to justice!”

The guards burst and melt into six strange monsters (shadows?). With a nod to the other Thieves, Akira steps forward, the others getting into some sort of formation. “Let’s see what you’ve got, then.”

“Very well,” Yusuke grins, launching the first attack.

With one palace under his belt and one on the way, Akira likes to think that he’s got the hang of the flow of battle. 

He gives out easy to follow orders to his teammates, letting them do what the situation calls for. He knows how emotional his own awakening was, and he knows that he definitely wouldn’t have been so keen on following orders then. So he lets Yusuke cut loose, the most directions he gives being where to aim those icicles at. 

That leaves Neku. 

The most Akira really knows about what he can do is that his abilities are called “psyches,” but he had said that he couldn’t use them here. He’ll have to base this on what he already knows he can do.

“Neku!” he calls, quickly getting his attention, “We’re trusting you to keep them off our backs.”

Neku's gaze turns focused as he nods in response, before dashing off. Akira isn't sure what Neku went off to do, but he turns back to the battle anyway. 

“Apsaras!” he calls forth, focusing his attention on the battle. Madarame has much more guards than he previously let on, so he focuses his attention on covering the weaknesses his allies can’t reach.

Akira’s so focused on knocking down one of the two blacksmith-looking shadows, that he almost doesn’t notice one of the winged ones speeding close behind him. Adjusting quickly, he turns to either try to block it or get to it first. 

But before he can even call for a persona, the shadow is sent flying across the room into a wall. Following the direction it came from, he sees Neku, arm outstretched with an annoyed look on his face.

“And stay down this time!” He shouts after it, then nods to Akira before running off again. 

Akira doesn’t waste time, now that he knows Neku’s reliable in a real fight, he can focus on taking down the shadows before him. But it seems every time he looks up, there’s another that wasn’t there before.

Madarame’s voice rings out from where he stands mockingly above, “I usually wouldn’t waste too much effort on petty thieves like you, but you’re too annoyingly persistent to let live.”

Two more shadows burts from the ground in front of Akira. He only just manages to jump back out of the way of a swinging hammer. _More of the same shadows?_

“Group up!” he calls to the others, making sure to keep nothing in between his back and the wall. 

When they all gather nearby, he explains his plan (or if he could call it that), “We need to find a way to retreat.”

Yusuke protests, “But what about Sensei- What about Madarame?”

Mona looks at him sternly, “Safety takes priority here!”

“We look for an opening,” Akira decides, because that’s really the only option they have. “And we _all_ go. Leave no one behind, got it?”

The Thieves nod in understanding. Yusuke’s a bit hesitant, but he agrees. He looks to Neku, but he’s standing there with a focused look on his face. Light begins to glow around where he stands.

At first Akira thinks the change in the air is an awakening, but for some reason he _knows_ it isn’t. Then a ringing starts in his ears, he feels an otherworldly presence as a girl’s voice speaks to him.

_I am thou, thou art I... Thou hast acquired a new vow. It shall become the wings of rebellion that breaketh thy chains of captivity._

_With the new foundation of the Suit of Spades, I have obtained the winds of blessing that shall lead to a transformation..._

The presence departs, the bell chimes. This is the first time this has ever happened in battle before. When Akira finally comes back to his senses, he finds that the entire group is surrounded by light. 

When the light dies down, all gazes — from their allies to their enemies — are drawn to the only figure still glowing. 

“Since when the hell did he get wings?” Akira blurts out, surprising even himself. Normal angel wings would’ve been weird, but black wings only made of some sort of feathery pattern? That’s incredibly specific for a reason he doesn’t know yet.

“You all can see them now? Oh, _sweet,_ now I don’t have to convince you I have them,” Neku says. One of his hands reaches into his pocket, pulling out something small enough to fit in his hand without being seen. He flicks the small item up in the air, closing his eyes as he catches it and brings it in front of his chest.

A calm look overtakes his features as his head tilts downward as he starts to _levitate._

One of the faster shadows recognizes him as a threat, rushing toward him as the other shadows begin to move again. Akira’s just about ready to call the rest of them into action, but before any of them could blink, Neku’s eyes open and with a flap of his wings, he dashes out of the way far before it can even try to strike where he once was. Three large spikes of ice stab through the enemy, taking the last of it’s life that the rest of them had trouble finishing off earlier.

Neku tosses another object into the air and catches it with his other hand, switching one of them for the next. A force surrounds one of the winged shadows before it slams into the other, both of them dissipating in inky black smoke.

The last two of those kind of shadows look at each other nervously before attempting to run, but are clothes-lined by a barbed chain that appears seemingly from the ether. Finally, Neku lowers to the ground, looking to the rest of the group.

“Let’s run!” He says. And run, they sure fucking did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *slams hand on table sae style* FUCKING FINALLY
> 
> okay so now that we have the awakening and neku's whole thing going on things should pick up the pace but please do not quote me on that. 
> 
> i may have been in the middle of writing like the third or so chapter and realized that madarame's a bastard that absolutely Would have plans for neku and so i had to put that in there. it kind of changed yusuke's awakening just a little bit, but honestly i needed to change it up because otherwise i would've died writing that scene. i don't know how some writers can straight up novelize the game but my hat's off to you all. 
> 
> neku's confidant has started! it met the two specific requirements and therefore they get to bond :D spades!! i googled the meaning of each suit and was like "oh hell yeah neku's getting the spades" but keep in mind that i kind of jazzed up the meanings of each card suit to fit the characters they belong to, soooo......
> 
> also blink if you miss it new ann outfit lmaonade
> 
> updates might slow down bc of school but they were slow anyways so i'm not completely sure if it's gonna make a difference??? it might tho so be prepared miss posting one month
> 
> if i have any other things i want to share about my writing process, i might edit this later. but for now, have a good day!
> 
> New Confidants:  
> Rhyme: 2 of Clubs  
> Neku: 2 of Spades  
> ????  
> ????


	10. "Mind Us"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on TGSH:  
> Yusuke: *awakens*  
> Neku: what the fuck was that
> 
> Neku: *has wings an uses his pins after a whole bunch of glowing lights and shit*  
> The others: what the fuck is HE
> 
> And now back to kinda-dead kid(s) and at Least one delinquent, maybe more?:  
> Yusuke joins the team and Neku is forced to go into a little more detail about things he hid beforehand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hoo boy it has been QUITE the month and it will be even more of a month after this. next month might skip an update entirely oops. anyways have a nice day

In all honesty, Neku’s good at _doing._ He can sketch something in his notebook without planning too far ahead, he can make quick decisions in the UG when it’s really important, stuff like that. He knows how to make himself to live _in the moment_ and get _most_ things done. 

But now, as he stands further from the rest of the group, staring at the message notification that went off as soon as they all left the metaverse… 

**_1 new message from Almost-Blocked Number_ **

_Where were you just now?_

…Neku has no fucking clue how to respond. What’s he gonna say? _I was on another plane higher than the UG and watched one of my friends awaken to supernatural powers?_ Is he going to explain the fact that he was with the rumored Phantom Thieves who _also_ have supernatural powers? _Hell no!_ Not only would that be spilling his knowledge of the Thieves, but he’d have to also explain that he’s now in a pact with… well, at least _one_ of them (he still isn’t very sure what happened on that front). 

And so, he tells a partial truth.

_i’m at yusukes_

_why?_

_Call it curiosity._

That is so much bullshit that Neku doesn’t even blink as he sends his reply.

_why do i find that hard to believe_

_I could never imagine the reason why._

_right_

_so you took unnecessary time out of your busy schedule to check on what i’m doing right now_

_for zero reason?_

_No reason other than the goodness of my heart._

“If that’s what you want to call it…” Neku grumbles under his breath. It draws the attention of Akira, who gives him a curious look. He just points to his phone, “I’ll join you guys in a minute.”

He turns his attention to the new messages that were sent. 

_Anyways, it’s interesting that you think I’m “super busy” all the time._

_Even though there hasn’t been much going on for a small while._

_are you trying to say that you arent?_

_then what are all those excuses for?_

_I have no idea what you’re talking about._

_i’m talking about every time i invite you anywhere with the others_

_There’s a difference between a reason and an excuse._

_uh huh_

_sure_

_You would know this best, wouldn’t you? You said you were at your friend’s place._

_But isn’t it really that you have plans with the Phantom Thieves?_

Huh.

Neku is not surprised. He had tried to at least somewhat honor the Thieves’ wishes about not saying anything to anyone, but it’s pretty difficult hiding things from the Composer. Annoyingly enough, some part of him had known all of this was inevitable, that there was no point in trying to keep that promise. On the other hand, he would probably feel worse if he had just turned around and told someone right after saying he wouldn’t. 

_At least it’s a text message and not a bullet,_ he thinks to himself, focusing back on the screen. 

_u know what josh_

_Need something?_

_are u at wildkat rn?_

_No, why?_

_i actually do have plans with the phantom thieves_

_and we need a place to talk_

_i’ll text u later_

_That’ll be quite the conversation, won’t it?_

_pls tell me ur not gonna be too difficult about this_

_No ❤_

_I’ll see you tomorrow._

Neku sighs. Seeing as he didn’t state a time, Joshua is probably just going to drop in to talk to him without any warning whatsoever. _Whatever,_ Neku decides to join back in the group.

“Sorry, got caught up for a moment.”

Akira nods in acknowledgement, “Who was that?” 

Neku can’t really tell if he’s suspicious or genuinely curious. He decides to tell a half truth again, “One of my friends wanted to know where I was.”

They quickly fill him in on what they’ve been talking about. They can’t go to that place they were last time to talk, as Yusuke’s very obviously too tired to go that far. They also shouldn’t go anywhere they would worry about being overheard, and Neku gave that shitty excuse about the diner last time… Well, this is where he comes in again, isn’t it?

“I know a cafe in Shibuya that isn’t too far. It’s on Cat Street. It should be busy enough right now that the people won’t hear us, but not super crowded.” _And if it isn’t then we’ll just have to fix that with some minor mass manipulation._

“Really?” Ann asks, a thoughtful look on her face, “What’s it called?” 

“It’s called Wildkat,” Neku gestures for them to follow, “Do you guys want to go?”

Akira has never been sure of what he should expect when going anywhere in Tokyo. Leblanc is cozy, if a little old school. But he’s heard of all types of places, and is coming to find that the comfortable familiarity of Leblanc might be the exception. 

Wildkat isn’t bad, though, it’s nice. It’s much more modern, but it isn’t stuffy or minimalist. There’s a table just outside and a few booths and tables spread around inside. This place is much more open than the hole-in-the-wall cafe Akira lives above. The counter even has a display case full of food for people to see as they walk in. All of it is fitting for a place like Shibuya. 

The man behind the counter looks up as they walk in, greeting Neku. “Hey there Phones!”

“Phones?” Morgana asks from within his bag. Akira jostles it a little to tell him to quiet down. 

“I thought you’d know my name by now, Mr. H,” Neku responds conversationally, walking up to the counter. 

“Sorry ‘bout that, No-Phones, I’ll get it right next time,” the man looks to the rest of them. Something about his more-than-knowing gaze gives Akira a weird vibe. “New friends?”

“Yeah, I met them not too long ago,” Neku shrugs, gesturing between them in an introductory manner, “Everyone, this is Mr. Hanekoma. He owns this cafe and makes me help out sometimes.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Ann says politely, “Don’t mind us, we’re just going to talk and stuff.”

Mr. Hanekoma turns towards a door that presumably leads to a back room, “No worries. Just holler if you wanna order somethin’. As long as you’re paying, of course.”

The man disappears into the back and Neku leads them to a half-booth. Akira and Ryuji sit in the chairs on one side, while Neku, Yusuke and Ann sit in the booth. Akira looks around at the couple of people who were already here. It’s like Neku said, they all seem to be caught up in their own business, so he deems it safe to talk. 

“We should fill you in on the details of the metaverse,” he says to Yusuke. The others take over from there, since it’s now time for the repetitive part. He zoned out during all of this the first time, he can already tell he’s going to do it again. At least he’s already known for being quiet. 

There’s only one other person who isn’t participating in the discussion, which is Neku. It makes sense, the guy’s new to all this as well. But it can’t help but remind him of the weird thing before his confidant. It wasn’t an awakening. Despite the obvious absence of screaming, blood, flames, and a persona, there was a big difference between an awakening and… whatever that was. 

The air. For awakenings, the oppressive atmosphere of the metaverse is momentarily cleared away just before the flames rise. He isn’t sure if it’s limited to persona users, since he hasn’t experienced someone’s awakening without one, but there’s almost a feeling of anticipation that rises within him. A sense of familiarity and empathy that fills his being and resonates where his personas rest in the back of his mind. It could just be the feeling of sharing a similar struggle.

That thing that happened with Neku was… unfamiliar, to say the least. Sure there was blue and glowing lights and all, but it absolutely wasn’t an awakening. It very obviously was some kind of bond, as the whole thing _did_ establish a confidant. But that bond carried something else with it, something unfamiliar and familiar at the same time. He can’t put a word on it just yet. 

But what’s even more odd is that it felt almost as if he had just been caught up in it. Like that power hadn’t originally been directed at _him,_ but someone else.

Yusuke’s voice brings him out of his musing, “The Phantom Thieves who steal hearts… To think they truly exist. Or that I knew one.”

Neku shakes his head, “I’m not one of them, actually. We’re just working together.”

“Speaking of…” Akira says, coming back into the conversation.

Neku nods, “Right, more explanations.”

“Is this about that wing thing? I noticed none of the rest of you had them.” Yusuke raises a hand to his chin in thought, “I hadn’t been focused on it at the time, but your wings were truly stunning. Their likeness is similar to that of an angel, with their width like an imposing sign of strength. However they’re dark and jagged, contrasting the very ideal of the a pure and peaceful freedom we usually perceive of wings. A fallen angel, a harbinger of rebellion. I can see why you include their imagery in your work so often.”

 _Are all artists like this?_ Akira wonders as he tries to process whatever just came out of Yusuke’s mouth.

Neku looks away, scratching the back of his head, “U-Uh, thank you? I honestly have no idea how to respond to that.”

 _…Or it’s just him._

“Do not be concerned,” Yusuke nods like he’s confirming something, “It was a compliment.”

Ryuji snorts, “Dude, I don’t think that's what he was getting at.”

 _“Anyways,”_ Neku continues, “Ask away and I’ll answer as much as I can.”

“Let’s get the obvious out the way,” Mona pokes his head out of Akira’s bag on the table, “What was with that light show of yours?”

“It’s called a pact, which is made usually between two people in order to use pins in the UG,” he pauses to look at Yusuke, “The UG is the Underground, a place like the metaverse but at a lower level of mindfuckery. I’ll fill you in on the rest later.”

“Wait, so the reason your pins haven’t been working is because you didn’t have this pact?” Ann asks.

“It shouldn’t be that way, really” Neku shrugs, messing with his hair, “I’ve been using pins without an active pact longer than I have _with_ one.”

That statement makes Akira wonder, how long has Neku been aware of this UG? There were probably people who’ve gone there before him, seeing as he had to get all this info from somewhere, but who else? Are there other people who know about it?

“Well it _is_ a cognitive world,” Morgana hums, “If the time when you were limited to a pact left a greater impression on you, then your mindset could be a factor.” 

Everyone looks back to Neku as he physically ceases all movement. “That makes _so much sense,”_ he puts his head in his hands, but Akira could still hear a muffled, “I hate that he was right.”

 _He? Wonder who he’s talking about…_

“What else can we know about pacts?” Akira asks. 

“Other than the fact that it got rid of my migraine in there, not much. It’s between two people, but something weird happened this time.” Neku picks up his bag from beneath the table and starts rummaging through it, “I’ll look into that later. But in the meantime, do any of you want to order anything?”

“Oh,” Yusuke says, disappointment coloring his tone, “I didn’t bring any money.” 

“It’ll be on me,” Neku says, pulling out his wallet, “Don’t worry about it.”

Everyone asks for small, cheap things off the menu before they do the needlessly complicated movement of getting out of the way so Neku can get out of the booth. Akira just orders a coffee, hoping it’ll at least be half as good as Sojiro’s. 

He looks over to where Neku is talking with the cafe owner. He noticed how that line of conversation ended a little too fast, but he won’t comment on it. 

“So,” Ann starts up the conversation again, “What do you think Madarame is going to do? Didn’t you say he threatened to call the police?”

“Sensei spoke to me on the way over. He’s most likely going to take legal action against Neku,” Yusuke says gravely. “And judging by how it’s gone so far, he’ll end his career before it even starts.”

The entire mood of the group drops at this news, not like it was that high to begin with. He doesn’t really know him that well, but judging by the start of Neku’s confidant, he will soon. 

“What the hell…” Ryuji mutters with rising anger, “Talk about being way too on guard.”

Akira completely agrees, feeling a similar anger build up quickly. He refuses to stand around and let this happen. He’s not going to do nothing to prevent two people he knows from getting fucked over by some senile old man who’s let money go to his head. 

“Do you know when he’ll do it?” He asks, leaning across the table with intense focus, “When he’ll try to sue?”

“He won’t do it during the exhibition. It’d cause a scandal, and he’d never want a loss that could be prevented like that,” Yusuke looks down for a moment, but when he looks back up his eyes are full of resolve, “Please allow me to join you all in changing Sensei — _Madarame’s_ heart.”

“Welcome to the team,” Akira leans back as the rest nod enthusiastically. He knows that if they confront Madarame’s shadow in the metaverse, he’s going to let Yusuke have the first and last move (that doesn’t mean he won’t be eager to get some of the in-between shots in). 

He doesn’t even try to hide his smirk as he says, “We’ll get him before the end of the exhibit, then.”

“Works for me.” 

Now let it be known that Akira does _not_ jump in his seat because he is absolutely _not_ caught off guard by Neku’s sudden appearance next to the table. No matter what anyone may say later on.

“Oh, Neku,” Yusuke says, like he’s used to this kind of thing, “How long have you been there?”

“Maybe two minutes, give or take,” he shrugs, like this is a thing that happens all the time. “So we have until the end of his stolen art show before he comes for my neck, huh?”

“You were here for that too?” Ann asks in confusion. 

“Nope,” he shakes his head, “I just figured that he would do something like that, going off of what he said in the palace.” 

“I’m sorry,” Yusuke says, “If I had realized sooner what kind of man he is, your future wouldn’t be in jeopardy. You even tried to warn me and help me, and yet I still turned away from the truth. All of you have tried to help me in some way or another, but I was too stubborn to realize.”

“Don’t sweat it man!”

“Ryuji’s right, you don’t need to even say all that.”

Neku just crosses his arms, an unreadable look on his face. “Well? Are all of your apologies out of your system? Or do you need to keep going?”

Huh. _That’s surprisingly dickish._

Yusuke blinks, “…I suppose they are.”

“Good,” he nods, “Did that make you feel any better?”

“Not really, no.”

“Then there you have it,” Neku shrugs, “This situation was out of your control from the beginning. If you blame yourself for it, nothing you do will make you feel any better. Because _this isn’t your responsibility._ So take back your apologies.”

Akira honestly hadn’t known where Neku was going with that. _He had me in the first half, not gonna lie._

After a moment, Yusuke responds, “Then I take it back.”

A round of smiles go around the table, with Neku uncrossing his arms and moving to sit back down. He passes around all the stuff they ordered. 

Akira’s wary of the coffee in the same way he’s been of any cup that isn’t made by his guardian. Neku had promised that it was good, but he has _standards_ now, which has completely ruined his previous disposition of eating and drinking pretty much whatever was placed in front of him. Cautiously, Akira takes a sip. 

It’s… _good!_ He takes a breath of relief. It’s not the same as Sojiro’s (which he’s mildly concerned he’s already developed an addiction to), but there’s something about it that makes sense. Maybe something about the way it was brewed? It just feels fitting for a cafe in a place as trendy as Shibuya. 

While Akira is busy becoming even more of a coffee addict, Neku starts speaking again. “Besides, I’ve found that getting pissed at all the shit that’s been done to you to be a _great_ form of self care.”

Morgana makes a face at that, “Why do I get the feeling that isn’t the best thing to use as long-term ‘self-care?’” 

“No idea what you mean,” Akira deadpans. 

“Seems fine to me,” Ryuji adds. 

“I don’t think there’s a problem with that,” Ann says. 

Akira is the one who’s able to hold the straight face the longest, and it’s surprisingly Yusuke who cracks first at their antics. 

Yusuke laughs like he’s surprised he’s doing it, before he settles with a smile, “There’s something about you all that’s familiar, in a way. I think we’ll get along well.” 

Akira quickly realizes two things: one, Yusuke laughs like that charming antagonist in the anime he used to watch as a kid (that he _totally_ didn’t have a crush on who said that). The second thing is that he almost let himself forget to do his leader thing. _Time to break it down._ Then he pauses a moment, remembering Rhyme’s warning. _Time to break it down, but quieter._

“Our target is Ichiryusai Madarame. We have until the end of the exhibit, which is on the 5th. That means we have 16 days, minus two to send the calling card. Neku, are you joining us?”

“Count me in. I don’t think that distortion stuff shouldn’t bother me anymore.”

Akira smiles, “Alright, is all the info clear?”

No one says anything otherwise. “Then this meeting has concluded. No more serious stuff allowed.”

Neku finds that the Phantom Thieves usually end up hanging out like a normal friend group after meetings. It’s fun and familiar. He feels like he’s going to have to introduce them to his own friend group.

Somehow the conversation led to the main argument between Morgana, Ann, and Ryuji about which powers are best.

(He hears Akira say under his breath something about this being the second time they’ve done this. 

“Why does this conversation even need to be had twice?” Neku wonders.

“It didn’t end satisfyingly enough!” says Ann.

“Come on! We just didn’t finish in time ‘cause the bell rang,” says Ryuji, who is most likely telling the truth.

“You’re just mad that we didn’t include you last time, huh Akira?” Morgana says knowingly.)

All three of them refuse to let Akira join in, apparently for the second time. Neku supposes it’s because all of his comments are vague and not really tilted towards one side or the other. Yusuke is very obviously partial to his own element just as much as the others are partial to theirs. After only moments of debate, Morgana ends up loudly proclaiming that wind is the coolest and so the conversation about what’s best should be about the runner-ups.

All in all? Neku wonders if the Phantom Thieves are actually sixth graders. But despite his first refusal to be a part of this conversation, he finds himself answering anyways.

“Fire, of course.”

“See?” Ann brags, doing a triumphant victory pose. “I told you fire was cooler.”

Neku shrugs, “I’m a bit biased to fire. Pyrokinesis is the first pin I ever used, and I tend to have it as my go-to.”

“Isn’t that where you control things with your mind, though?” Ryuji asks.

“That’s telekinesis,” Morgana shakes his head condescendingly. “Pyrokinesis is controlling fire.”

“But Neku, didn’t you use ice against those things earlier?” Yusuke asks.

Absently picking at his hair, Neku looks away, “You already proved that ice worked well enough. I couldn’t break the aesthetic like that.”

(Someone says something under their breath about “artists” being “like that,” but he couldn't pinpoint who.)

“What about you, Akira?” Ryuji asks, “You wanna join my side?”

The boy in question only silently raises an eyebrow, as if he’s saying, _“So now you want my opinion?”_

Ryuji seems to have gotten this message clearly. “C’mon man, I gotta have someone with me!”

Akira huffs, dramatically tilting his head to make the reflecting light on his glasses hide his eyes. “Curse.”

To say that the rest of the Thieves are unreasonably upset by Akira’s answer is an understatement.

Ann wins with Neku as the tie-breaker. _Fire power hell yeah._

Soon they all part, and it becomes late enough that Neku is the only one left in the cafe. Other than Mr. Hanekoma, of course.

“You gonna explain what’s going on, Phones?” he says as Neku leans on the front of the counter. 

Neku groans, “I’m tired of explaining things. Can’t you just read my mind or something? I know you were listening in on our conversation.”

Mr. H shrugs, putting his hands in his pockets as he takes a break from wiping the counter. “Sure, but I don’t wanna read your mind and none of what I heard explains you knowing the Phantom Thieves. Or tellin’ them about the UG.”

“Right, well,” Neku stops. Why did he tell them about the UG? He could’ve just refused. He could’ve done a lot of things, at the time. “I met them on a plane above the UG.”

Mr. Hanekoma’s eyes narrow at that, but he doesn’t say anything, waiting for him to continue.

“They call it the metaverse, and they use it to change peoples’ hearts by stealing their desires.” Okay. Now it’s time to rationalize this in a way that would make more sense than him being a shitty liar or wanting to be on good terms with the people who promised to help him with Madarame. “If I was a normal person, I could probably get away with accidentally being pulled in, but they saw my wings today. Not to mention I had to fight some of the weird monsters that were there. They wanted an explanation, so I gave them the bare basics.”

Mr. Hanekoma nods understandingly. “C’mon kid, help me clean up.” 

Neku sighs, “You don’t even pay me.”

“You already have a job, Phones. That’s enough for a student.”

“I don’t get paid for that either!”

Mr. Hanekoma just laughs at his complaints. Neku gets to work like he was told, wiping down tables and such. It’s when he’s halfway through cleaning the table he and the others sat at earlier that Mr. H breaks the small silence they had.

“You made a new pact, huh?” he says conversationally, but he knows him a bit better by now. It isn’t a question. “Tell me about it.”

Neku pauses, the rag in his hand still against the table. “I wasn’t trying to do anything, just…” He stops to think about it. He had been doing what was asked of him, trying to keep any shadows off the backs of the Thieves and Yusuke. But it’s been a while since he’s fought with other people, and he fell back into a rhythm he hadn’t been in for a while now… 

“You forced a pact,” Mr. Hanekoma says it simply. Well, yeah, that’s true. But Neku’s been avoiding calling it that the entire time, and he hates that he has to actually face that fact _now._

Instead of answering, Neku focuses back on wiping the table. So what if he forced a pact? So what if he both forced a pact _and_ fucked it up so badly it spread to the rest of them? Nothing he can do about it now. Just focus on the moment instead of the past.

“Don’t twist my words like that, Phones,” Mr. Hanekoma says in a half-joking tone. 

“Thought you said you weren’t going to read my mind,” he grumbles, wiping the table with a little more force than needed.

“I didn’t. That table’s probably clean by now, since it’s been ten minutes,” Mr. H says, walking over. “Who’d you make a pact with?”

Neku finally turns around to face him. “I’m not sure? I think it was supposed to be Yusuke, but then something happened and it sort of… spilled over? To the rest of them, I mean.”

“You put too much in it, huh?” Mr. H nods, “Not too bad for your first time. It shouldn’t’ve spilled over, but it could be that metaverse place.”

Wait, now he’s confused. “So you’re not mad that I forced a pact? Aren’t you the guy who told me how important pacts are?”

And of course, this makes Mr. Hanekoma laugh. Yet somehow, Neku feels a lot better. “It’d be another thing if you forced a pact to take advantage of it. Just stick with ‘em and you’ll be fine.”

“Take advantage of it?” Neku asks. How the hell does that happen?

Mr. H just grabs the damp rag Neku had set down and begins walking toward the back. “Active pacts between Players are strong ‘n all, but ones between Reapers are stronger. You’d be better off asking Josh about it.”

Neku grimaces. Right, he forgot about that. Now he has to explain himself to yet another person.

“Yo, Phones,” Mr. Hanekoma calls over, “Come over and help me out with these.”

He still thinks he should be getting paid for this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh boy oh man. we've got some good artsy boys on the team now, and a convo with joshua coming up later.... yeah be ready for that soon. i'm not sure if it'll be next chapter, but soon. 
> 
> this is now my longest chapter, at 4354 words. do not expect me to keep this up. i just needed to have mr h being a bit of a dad. more of him soon babes. i am tired so i do not remember my thought process for most of this chapter, so all of you got off lucky... i might edit this later when i finally remember. enjoy finding all of my little headcanons for now
> 
> edit: i remember things now! starting with joshua, i just think he’s neat. i think in this fic i got his character down better than other stuff i have, which is always fun. he’s such a little shit, but he’s a smart and manipulative little shit
> 
> so far neku’s told the pt about the existence of the ug and the existence of pacts, but not what either the ug or pacts are For. akira’s got some ideas on it, but he really doesn’t know (and neku really wants to keep it that way)
> 
> ann and neku are fire friends. look forward to more of them. 
> 
> mr hanekoma is nekus new dad sorry i dont make the rules.
> 
> anyways, i wish you all a good night


	11. "It's A Big Deal"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on TGSH:  
> the PT: hey yusuke hey neku welcome to the team also neku, once again, what the fuck are you  
> neku: i'm going to tell you barely anything bc one of the people who will shoot me for telling you is standing right there  
> mr. h: wtf i'm not gonna shoot you  
> neku: the "disappointed dad" look is just as deadly
> 
> joshua's there in spirit. maybe even literally idk
> 
> And now back to more dead kids than usual and a few dysfunctional thieves:  
> Neku and Joshua have a conversation. New members join the Phantom Thieves's infiltration into Madarame's palace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my fucking god i dont know why finishing this chapter made me so winded
> 
> SO TWEWY FANS HOW WE FEELING?? GOD THAT WAS A TRAILER HUH????
> 
> EDIT 2/1/2021  
> hello! as you may or may not have noticed, i changed this chapter a bit. i ended it differently and added a few other jokes and stuff (yes i set up a joke that will pay off like 10 chapters from now dont judge). anyways if you are reading this when the next chapter goes up thats epic and uh yeah bye

The next day is a rest day, since post-awakening fatigue is a terrible thing to deal with. 

With nothing but righteous rage, bare hands, and the raw and unsteady power of a persona, awakenings can be especially gruesome to both the newly-awakened and the whoever is in their way. Akira can barely even remember the main part of his own awakening, only the violent fury he felt that was urged on by Arsene’s encouragement. 

He can guess that it wasn’t a pretty sight. No wonder Ryuji had been wary of him for a while. He isn’t sure he wants to know what happened. 

Akira lets everyone know about their day off when he wakes up in the morning. As he heads down stairs, he spots Sojiro standing behind the counter as usual. 

“Come sit down and eat,” Sojiro says, waving him over to the plate of curry out for breakfast. His guardian doesn’t always make breakfast for him, but Akira has come to really appreciate it when he does. 

“Thank you,” Akira says as he sits down. It’s only polite. He’s going to just dig in, but the look on Sojiro’s face makes him pause. “…Something wrong?”

Shaking his head, he looks down at him with narrowed eyes. “Your friend, the blonde girl, told me the real reason why all of you came to ‘hang out’ so late the other day.”

Akira looks away. He trusts that Ann didn’t say anything incriminating, so he just hums, “Did she now?”

“Listen kid. The next time you bring a bunch of friends over that late, warn me. I can’t go back to a closed café just to make sure your friends go home. Even for situations like this,” Sojiro scolds, his usual strict tone coming in. But when he talks again, it’s almost completely gone, “And, uh, about that other friend of yours. Well, I mean — she wasn’t very specific, but she said someone has a rough home life? Was that what all of you talked about?”

Akira nods slowly, “For the most part, yeah.”

“I won’t pry about whatever you all said, but,” he turns his gaze to the quiet television, “You found that futon when you were cleaning out the attic, right? Put it to good use.”

Quickly realizing what he’s implying, Akira grins, “I gotcha. Thanks Boss.”

Sojiro smirks a little, before it turns back into a frown, “It’s only a temporary offer. I don’t want another little punk like you driving up my bills all year.” 

“Sure, sure.”

“And don’t think I don’t know how you teenagers are. Don’t get any ideas about bringing over a friend for any reasons like that, you hear me?”

Akira’s smile turns more into a grimace at that, “Loud ‘n clear.”

“I mean it, kid,” Sojiro says as a last warning, “Now eat and get to school.”

Akira does as he’s told and soon walks out the door with a goodbye. But just before he goes, he stops, turning around. “Thanks again. Really, I mean it.”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t make it a big deal,” Sojiro doesn't turn around to face him, busying himself in the kitchen, “It’s the least I coud do.”

Akira nods and walks out, not wanting to be late to school or anything. 

“The chief seems to be warming up to you,” Morgana meows as he waits for the train to school.

“Better late than never,” Akira shrugs. He can’t fault him for it, really, since he expected that kind of attitude from those who knew about his probation from the get-go. Unfortunately, it ended up being  _ everyone _ that found out about his situation. That’s the part he can feel a little salty over.

“And he’s not the only one warming up,” Mona says before hiding back in the bag. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Akira asks, raising an eyebrow. Morgana doesn’t respond, making a noise somewhere between a purr and a laugh.

Huh.

  
  


When Neku wakes up that morning, he’s still tired. Not from getting a bad night of sleep or staying up late or anything, but from meeting so many new people and interacting with them consistently for a short while. He’s burnt out. 

Thankfully, Akira’s text in the group chat he got added into means that he can head straight home after school. There’s his normal homework to do, but other than that he doesn’t have any sort of big plans for the first time in a little while, if he ignores the probability of a certain someone showing up out of nowhere. All he has to do is go through the school day and he’d be home free. 

Lunch comes faster than he realized, and he spends it with his head down on the table.

“Is there something wrong, Neku?” He hears Yusuke ask next to him.

“He’s just recharging,” Eri’s voice comes from across the table, “When the Neku-meter runs out, he’s gotta rest.”

“Neku-meter?”   


“That’s just what she calls it,” Shiki explains. Neku then feels someone poke his shoulder, but he doesn’t feel like looking up to see who. “Do you ever need to be alone for a little while after hanging out with friends? Neku gets like that but for a day or two at a time, especially if he’s around new people.”

“Then…” Yusuke’s confusion is audible, “Why is he here?”

“Because he doesn’t know what ‘rest’ means and still wants to keep us company.”

_ Okay, rude. _ She didn’t need to call him out like that.

Again he feels someone poke his shoulder. Looking up, he sees Shiki leaning over him with a smile. 

“He’s alive!” Eri cheers from beside her, but then makes a shooing motion with her hands, “Go on, find an empty classroom or something. Do homework or do whatever it is you artists do.”

Neku sighs, mustering the energy to respond to Eri’s good-natured teasing. “Designing clothes is pretty much the same.” 

“He speaks as well!” comes another cheer from Eri. Neku can barely even roll his eyes before he’s ushered out of the cafeteria. Which, in all honesty, he’s thankful for. 

Ever since over a year ago, he’s tried to be around people more often. But as it turned out, jumping from being alone all the time into being surrounded by people was not a good idea. The stress of the Reapers Game must’ve made him think that it was the cause of all the difficulty, but lo and behold, there was more. It isn’t that he hadn’t known how to talk to people (not including his bad habit of accidentally pissing people off), it had just been exhausting.

A good way of fixing that is to just listen to music alone, as simple as that sounds. Today isn’t too bad, if he’s being honest. Relaxing at lunch should be enough to make words a lot easier. 

Kosei is a big enough school to have a few abandoned classrooms on its higher floors, so Neku looks for the nearest one. 

Just as he’s debating going into the UG to sneak in without the nearby teacher noticing, he hears something. 

“Sa- huh? It started like that…” He glances in the direction of a familiar girl standing next to the stairwell. She faces him, but she’s obviously lost in thought, mumbling to herself. “Sakura? Sakurai? No, I’ve almost got it…”

As much as he’d really rather not talk to someone relatively new today, she obviously wants to talk to him for something. So, he approaches her gritting his teeth and trying not to sound like speaking is as much of a pain as it is. “It’s Sakuraba, actually.”

“Oh!” She says, startled like she didn’t notice him. “Right. I’m Hifumi Togo. Sakuraba-kun, you left this in the library.” 

She holds out a  _ very _ familiar notebook. It’s not just any random notebook out of all the ones he has. It’s the brown and purple notebook Neku uses to keep track of things. Private, confidential,  _ Underground _ things.

“Wait— You didn’t look inside, did you?” He asks her. Maybe he sounds a little too frantic because her eyes widen as she shakes her head.

“I didn’t look further than the inside of the cover, you have my word,” she assures, “My apologies. I was just looking for a name, even though I ended up forgetting it the moment my eyes strayed from the page.”

“It’s fine,” Neku says.  _ She immediately forgot about my name, huh… _ He gestures awkwardly with the notebook in hand. It feels like he’s speaking in sand, but he does so anyways. “…I guess I’ll see you around, Togo-san.”

“Have a good day, Sakuraba-kun.”

They part ways and he escapes into the abandoned classroom. He feels drained from that alone, so quickly steps into the extra room. 

_ I think this used to be an old music room, _ Neku observes. Quite fitting, seeing as he plans to just sit in the corner and listen to music. Unfortunately, when he gets settled down, he finds that his phone is dead. Weird, since it was at least at 60% or so when he last checked. Oh well, he still has his old mp3 player.

The time alone helps out a bunch, and he feels almost refreshed by the time lunch is over. Throughout the rest of the school day, there’s something bothering him about that earlier exchange about his notebook. He ignores the thought as much as he can, but without anything to focus on during his walk home, it comes back up again. 

Neku hasn’t been to the school library in a couple of  _ weeks, _ and yet he last saw his notebook a few  _ days _ ago. What’s going on with that?

He pushes the thought to the side once again.  _ That’s a problem for future me. _

Because right now, there’s a problem for present-Neku. The problem is that he has two options. Option one is to pretend he doesn’t see Joshua standing at the street corner up ahead and take a different route to his dorm, knowing that Josh would probably just meet him there and be obnoxious about it. 

Or option two, sigh loudly and continue walking forward to confront his destiny. Neku’s tried the first option before and it didn’t work, so he might as well get this over with. He hadn’t forgotten that Joshua wanted to talk to him, but he was hoping to at least make it back to his dorm first.

At Neku’s exaggerated sigh, Joshua gives a fake offended look, “And here I thought you wanted to spend time with me more.”

“Today’s a bad day.” Well, not as bad as it could be. Speaking doesn’t feel like he’s pulling his hair out all the while, so that’s great. And it doesn’t feel as difficult since it’s Joshua, someone he knows.

“Then I’ll make it a good day, since I’m walking you home, dear.”

Neku frowns, not feeling like taking the very obvious bait, “What do you want?”

“It’s about your new friends,” Joshua starts, matching Neku’s pace as the traffic signal says to cross. “Hanekoma’s told me most of what you told him, but I’d like to know what you’re planning to do going forward.”

Ah, business speak for “Now that you’ve fucked up, what are you going to do about it?” Neku holds annoyance back for now, since this isn’t the time to be complaining about things he caused. 

“I don’t plan on telling them about the Game, if that’s what you’re thinking,” He says, but that answer is basically a shot in the dark. He has no idea what kind of answer the Composer is expecting. “If stuff comes up that blocks our progress I might have to explain small things about the UG, though.”

Joshua looks off into distance for a minute. Following his gaze, Neku sees him watching a group of teens from another nearby school walking home. He seems deep in thought. 

It’s another long few minutes of walking together quietly before Joshua nods to himself, “That could work.”

“What could?” 

“You working with the Phantom Thieves,” Josh puts a hand to his chin, “The plane you call the metaverse is still relatively unfamiliar. You can tell me about their activities within that plane and help me keep an eye on them by sending me weekly to monthly updates.”

“Wait, why do you need to watch them?” Neku raises an eyebrow. “If you told me to stop talking with them entirely, I’d be pissed at you, but they also wouldn’t be able to learn about the UG anywhere else.”

“Unlike other domains, I don’t care too much if a couple of people know about the UG, as long as they don’t know about the Reaper’s Game without having played it themselves.” The Composer looks off into the daily crowd of pedestrians. “Some…  _ dislike _ the way I do things, since letting some winners return to life with their memories of the Game guarantees that there will always be at least a few people who know. I don’t think it’s a big deal.” 

Neku nods. This isn’t the first time the Composer has noted such a difference between Shibuya’s rules and the rules of other areas in Tokyo. In fact, he complains about them regularly. 

Glancing in the direction Joshua’s watching, he sees a person in a familiar kind of hoodie appear seemingly from the depths of the crowd. He can’t tell who it is from here, but he knows a Reaper when he sees one, even a low ranking one. They seem to see him as well, because they nod to him before walking off. 

Neku’s probably never going to get used to his position, but he tries.

“So what they know about the UG is  _ mostly _ no big deal,” he concludes, “That doesn’t explain why you’re planning on keeping such a close eye on them. You want weekly updates? Really?”

“The public may not care for them yet, but we’ve all got our eyes on the Phantom Thieves. There’s a lot of potential with them.”

“Who’s  _ we?” _ Neku asks, because he gets the feeling that he’s not exactly being included within that. 

Joshua rolls his eyes, “Only the  _ entire _ Tokyo Underground. We all know they’re going to be big, but no one knows how much. No matter what, having their influence your area would be beneficial. Shibuya’s been needing something to shake things up a little.”

“Last time you tried to shake things up a little, I died,” Neku deadpans.  _ Not only that, but you’re the one who killed me, _ he doesn’t say. They don’t need to get into that right now. “You sure this isn’t some weird competition between you and the other districts?”

Brushing his hair back, Joshua walks further ahead, “I only do things for the best interest of all Shibuya, but I guess it can be considered competitive. Reapers are territorial by nature, Neku.” 

“What is this, a nature documentary?” He grumbles, “And what do you mean? I haven’t really run into any problem outside Shibuya besides the classic ‘what are you’ stuff.”

Joshua stops, making Neku stop with him. There’s a frown on his face. “Other Reapers have approached you?”

“Yeah,” Neku frowns as well, “Why?”

“No reason,” Joshua waves him off, walking forward again, “You need to do more homework. Reapers are loyal to the place they died, simple as that. Just watch out when travelling outside of Tokyo and you’ll be fine.” 

Neku rolls his eyes, “So I should send you updates on what’s going on with the Thieves, got it. There’s still something bothering me, though.”

“Is it about that pact of yours?” Josh asks, “Don’t worry about it. I forced the pact between you and I and we turned out just fine, didn’t we?”

“That’s… debatable,” Neku shakes his head, “In fact, I’m pretty sure that’s straight-up false.” 

“Stop worrying so much about every little thing,” the Composer says, “You still think too much like a Player. Pacts with Reapers are stronger, but you’ve also got to be more careful with them. Players form a pact out of necessity, so it’ll only truly break through erasure. Reapers will form a pact out of choice, even if it is a forced one. Breaking that without being careful could easily harm the weaker of the two.”

“I  _ know _ that,” Neku says, even though he didn’t necessarily know the in-depth reasoning behind all of that. He knew the basics, because how could he  _ not _ know this stuff, with his position.

He concentrates on the new bond formed in his soul. It feels different from the ones with his old partners, the ones now resting dormant. This pact feels cold, but still warm in a way. Like being under a blanket on a cold day. But then there’s the part that spills over, almost like it’s overflowing. 

It’s not messed up on Yusuke’s part, but Neku’s. For some reason, it feels almost like this second pact is being tied together through one strong point of reference. This whole situation is strange. 

“That’s why I’m worried about it,” he says finally. He isn’t sure how long he had spent in silence, trying to figure out this new pact, but Joshua doesn’t mention it. 

“Neku, unless one of your Thief friends is great at hiding it, you’re the only Reaper that’s part of both the original and spillover pacts,” the Composer says like it’s obvious, “None of them are dead, part of the UG, or even a hybrid like you. Our rules don’t apply the same way, even if that cognitive world is somehow influenced by you. Your true partner may feel the benefits of the pact, and maybe the rest if they’re particularly sensitive. But if something goes wrong, you’re likely the only one who will take the brunt of it.”

That… actually does make him feel better about the whole thing. He wasn’t sure what exactly Mr. H had meant about “taking advantage of a pact” but he’s starting to get the idea. Now he’s relieved that he can’t even do that accidentally. 

Neku slows down his pace as he realizes they’re approaching his dorm. He opens the door and walks inside but stops halfway through the motion. Joshua hasn’t followed him.

“Are you just going to wait until I invite you in like a vampire?” Neku asks.

“I figured you’d want me to leave,” Joshua crosses his arms, his tone light in a way that makes Neku frown, “Since today’s a bad day.”

“Forget that. Just come on,” Neku waves him in. Just because he started the day off in a bad mood doesn‘t he has to stay in it. And hanging out with Josh isn’t too bad, especially since he hasn’t seen him in a little while. He doesn’t mention that aloud, though. “I have to fix whatever the hell’s going on with my phone.” 

Joshua follows him inside the dorms, “You’re in a hurry to get me in your room, aren’t you?”

“I take it back,” Neku says, pointing to the door. “Leave. Get out.”

“I was joking.”

“You’re no longer invited to my birthday party.”

“Now that’s just cruel.”

The next day comes. The school day begins, the teachers ask Akira questions and belittle him if he doesn’t know the answers, the school day ends. Fun times. 

With the arrival of the afternoon comes the first infiltration with their newest members. Neku still hadn’t responded yet about the equipment, so Akira just decided it would be better to just pick up something random and adjust from there. He departs to Untouchable, letting the rest know that he had to grab something before the meeting. 

It's on his way back to their studio hideout that Akira catches the familiar sight of orange hair disappear behind the corner of the building. It looks like Neku just got here as well. 

“Hey!” he calls out as he goes around the corner. It seems like he wasn’t walking alone, as both Yusuke and Neku are on the stairs. 

“Oh, hello Akira,” Yusuke greets while Neku waves. 

Akira continues walking with them up the stairs, “So, I got the stuff you wanted, Yusuke. But you never answered my message, Neku, so I just grabbed what seemed reasonable for you.”

Neku raises an eyebrow, “What stuff?”

“Equipment!” Morgana chimes from his bag, “Weapons, you know?”

“Oh, uh,” Neku scratches the back of his head, “My phone is acting up, so I didn’t see your message. Sorry about that.”

Akira nods. Maybe the nav is installing on his phone? It never really messed things up for him, but maybe it happened for the others?

They get into the hideout and start the meeting, explaining the fine details of infiltrations to their newest members. Stuff like fighting is easier explained in the metaverse, but they make sure to explain to Yusuke things like conserving energy and not hurting himself while throwing around spells from his persona. Overall, the meeting isn’t very long.

“Any other questions?” Morgana asks. 

“You said that our deadline is June 5th, right?” Neku dips his head down in thought, “How long does it usually take you guys to finish infiltrating a palace?”

“Well, last time it took over a week, including time to take some breaks in between,” Ann responds, “Since we know what we’re doing now and we have more members, we’ll probably be faster.”

“So about a week, huh?” Neku leans back on the seat, “Well, I wanted to let all of you know in advance that I’m not going to be free on the week on the 29th.”

“The whole week?” Akira asks, “Why?”

“Kosei has specialized scholarship opportunities,” He explains, “This is a part of mine, a work-study for the whole week. And before you ask, I can’t tell you where I work. Only that I work with an artist that really likes anonymity.”

“And they don’t let you off for the afternoons?” Ryuji leans forward, “That’s gotta suck, man.”

”I get to skip school.”

“Nevermind, that’s  _ awesome. _ Where do I sign up?”

“I doubt they’d take you, Ryuji,” Mona comments, “I doubt you even have any artistic talent.”

“You wanna say that again, cat?” 

After calming the two down from their bickering, it’s decided that they’ll start to head into the palace. Akira’s confident that they all can get the calling card sent within the week, and if not, Neku gave them the go-ahead to do it without him. He’d rather not leave behind anyone, if he can help it. 

“And now the fun part where we go over codenames,” Akira starts off once Madarame’s palace fades in. 

“Before that,” Neku says, looking through his bag, “I figured I should bring a mask to fit in with you all better.”

The mask Neku takes out reminds Akira of his own. It’s an almost whitish purple with a feathery pattern going all around his eyes. On top of that is an interesting red pattern almost like Neku’s wings, except not quite. 

“Nice!” Skull says before Yusuke can even prepare to give a small speech on his opinion, “Are you really gonna be fightin’ in your school uniform, though?” 

“It’s just the jacket,” Neku tosses the uniform blazer into his bag, taking out a new one. “Despite what you might think, Kosei couldn’t possibly enforce a dress code for the students. My class is full of art students and two of my friends are fashion designers, if they tried to limit the dress code too much there would be riots.”

Akira can see the appeal of breaking the dress code, but with his instructions to stay inconspicuous, it wouldn’t matter what school he went to. 

Neku puts on a dark purple jacket with a white zipper, rolling the sleeves up past his elbows. “A friend made this for me for my birthday last year. She said it reminded her of ‘the old Neku,’ whatever that means.”

“She might have been referring to the purple,” Yusuke comments, looking amused for some reason, “From what I remember, the first time I saw you wear an outfit without the color purple in it somewhere was fairly recently.” 

“I’m entitled to wear my favorite color as much as I want. Besides, you haven’t even known me as long.”

“Even I can admit it’s a little excessive.”

“You don’t get to talk about what’s ‘excessive,’ Yusuke. Not since what happened with the Sea Project.” 

Yusuke frowns, “I followed the theme as directed.”

“You couldn’t have just used a picture for a reference?” Neku asks, “You  _ had _ to go out and buy one?”

Akira just watches them talk, sharing a look with the other Thieves who also have no idea what they’re talking about. 

“Nevertheless, I won’t make the same mistake twice,” Yusuke declares, “No, I think I should borrow instead of buy.”

“That’s not the lesson you should learn from that.” Neku rolls his eyes, before refocusing on the rest of the group. 

“What are you even talking about?” Akira takes the chance to ask.

“Crab,” Neku and Yusuke both answer. They do not elaborate. 

“So…” Mona puts the topic back on track. “About those code names?”

It was fairly easy to decide Yusuke’s new codename due to his outfit. Neku’s is where they had trouble. Akira figures it probably won’t be animal-based like the others, unless they wanted to go off of Neku’s mask. Well, with those pins, Neku’s kind of like a jack of all trades, similar to himself. But probably not a master of none, according to his favoring of fire. 

“Ace?” Akira suggests.

Neku thinks it over, but nods fairly quickly, grinning like there’s a joke everyone is missing. “I think Ace suits me fine.”

“Now, about your equipment.” Akira hands Fox his katana and gun, and turns to give Neku his. 

He finds him standing frozen, staring at the offered firearm. Well. That’s not a good sign. 

“Are you okay?” Panther places a hesitant hand on his shoulder. Neku doesn’t answer, doesn’t even move. 

“It’s fake,” Mona tries to assure him, but even Akira can quickly see it won’t work. “It’s to fool the enemies into thinking it’s real. Since we know it’s fake, it won’t harm us.” 

Neku blinks, then slowly shakes his head, “I-I’m not…” He clears his throat, “I’m not fucking touching that.”

Akira nods and immediately puts it away, asking, “Are you okay with short-range weapons? It’s also technically fake.”

It takes just a moment, but Neku nods. It takes another moment of him trying to pull himself together before he asks, “What is it?”

“A machete,” Akira says, smiling because machetes are cool.

Neku gives a shaky grin in return, “Hell yeah.”

With new teammates Ace and Fox, they head further into the palace, teaching the two the ropes as they go along. With the pins Neku—  _ Ace _ has, they find that he’s particularly good at being in the backup team with the one other person, picking off enemies that get too close. Akira notices that while he’s good with another person, he isn’t necessarily used to a team. He finds that his new teammate tends to stick to whoever is nearest.

Ace’s repertoire of attacks pretty much rivals his own in variety. Even after explaining what each of the pins he brought does, it’s interesting to see what he’ll pull out next. He’s quick to catch on to the system of weaknesses, and Akira mostly saw attacks similar to each of their own elements when the situation called for it. Like when he called out the electric weakness of a shadow and both Ace and Skull went in for it. The shadow stood no chance. 

Still, Ace seemed very obviously partial to fire. He and Panther made a good pair, roasting their enemies with no remorse. Once Panther reminded him to use his machete there was no stopping the two of them. One of them would go in close range and the other would use fire from a different side, switching off as they moved. If he didn’t know better, Akira would think Ace has been on the team the whole time. 

Fox is surprisingly strong for how skinny he is, but Akira decides not to question it. While Skull’s physical approach was more blunt and worked because of sheer force, Fox is more precise. He has a good eye in finding small weaknesses to leave shadows in critical condition. The only thing holding him back is his lack of fighting experience, which is understandable.

But that lack of training seems to almost disappear when Fox and Ace work together. Sure, there’s quite a few stumbles and all that, but Ace comes to watch his back and then they’d both be back to fighting like nothing happened. It was when they first worked together that Akira realizes that Ace had as much precise control over his psyches as Fox did his skills. If there weren’t any sort of troubles during battle, Akira wonders if they would even need to speak to fight in sync. That’d be pretty impressive to watch. 

All in all, he’s proud that they all can accommodate two new teammates in such a short time. They get through the palace a lot faster, with people taking breaks and swapping out, and Akira’s sure that they’ll be able to get pretty far today. 

They discover a safe room not too long after dodging a series of security lasers and decide to rest. Their new members get along well with the others, but it’s been particularly amusing to watch Ace and Fox get into any sort of in-depth conversation about literally anything, even in the middle of the palace exploration.

But Akira doesn’t pretend that he hasn’t noticed that Ace’s hands are still shaking. He saw how hard he flinched when Ryuji took out his gun to take down some shadows. After that he had let everyone except Ace know that they were going to try to limit gun usage today at least (Mona’s slingshot seemed not to affect him, which made sense).

So, after a moment of careful debate on whether or not he should bother him, Akira approaches. “Hey.” 

“Oh, hey,” he responds with a distracted hum, crossing his arms. Then he sighs, “I know what you’re going to ask about. I’m fine.”

“Really?” Akira raises an eyebrow, “You knew I was gonna ask how you were adjusting to the team so far?”

“Yup,” he deadpans, “I’m psychic.”

“And I believe you completely,” Akira leans against the wall. He looks out over the rest, chatting away and relaxing, “So? How is it?”

“The team?” Ace hums, “I’m not used to fighting with more than one other person, but I think I’ll get the hang of it. You guys are… interesting, to fight with. It feels different…” he pauses, but then clarifies, “Not in a bad way or anything. It’s just a different kind of flow to get used to.” 

“A different kind of flow?” Akira asks. 

He nods, explaining, “You guys find weaknesses to go after until something gives way. I’m used to sort of building up and releasing a big attack together. Both need a lot of focus, but in different places.” He stops a moment, then rolls his eyes, “And before you ask, I’m not going to tell you who I fought with before.”

Akira glances back, “And how’d you know I would ask that?”

“I told you, Joker,” Ace shrugs, looking to be in a significantly better mood, “I’m psychic.”

“Sure, sure. I’ll make sure to keep a healthy fear of your terrifying psychic powers,” Akira says, making his joking tone match. He decides now’s the time to ask. “You think you’ll be alright tomorrow?”

Ace uncrosses his arms, his gaze pointed almost stubbornly toward the others (who are all trying and failing at pretending they aren’t listening. To be fair, the room isn’t very big). Akira turns that direction as well, trying not to pressure him into saying anything with his stare. He’s been told that his eyes are “weirdly intense” and his glasses aren’t present in the metaverse to help diminish that.

Finally, Neku speaks, taking off his mask and letting it hang in his hand. “I figured about halfway through that you all would probably be using your guns a lot more, right?”

Akira nods, not denying it. “Normally. Didn’t want to cause something to happen in the middle of a fight.”

”I don’t want to lie and say that I’m fine with that, but I do get it. Stop holding back tomorrow and I’ll prove there’s nothing to worry about. Deal?”

Akira feels like that’s as good as he’s gonna get, “Alright. I felt like fighting more tomorrow anyways. No good to let everyone else do most of the work.”

Neku smirks a little, his wings shifting with his mood. (Either Akira’s quickly gotten used to those oddly-shaped wings, or the fact that they’re even there keeps slipping out of his mind for whatever reason. It’s strange.) “I was hoping so. Even without knowing what a persona even was before all this, using more than one seems unique.”

Akira huffs a little. “‘Unique’ is a word for it. Maybe we just haven’t met anyone else with the same ability. Plenty of people don’t have personas awakened.”

“It’s possible,” Neku agrees, pulling back on his mask. “I mean, I don’t have one.” 

Huh. He does bring up something interesting, about not having a persona and all. Akira wonders if he’ll ever get the right catalyst to awaken. He honestly thought Madarame would’ve been enough, since even Akira himself awakened just in defense against someone he didn’t know.

“It’s impressive, though,” Akira points out, stepping away from the wall. “You’ve kept up with all of us so far. Keep it up.” 

“…Thanks, I guess,” Ace glances at him, following toward the rest of the group. “You know, you’re a lot more chatty than usual.”

“It’s a skill of mine,” Akira shrugs, “C’mon.” Calling everyone together, he leads the discussion of their next steps. 

They have a palace to explore. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> twewy fans were fed well this week yall. we did it yall. anime AND a sequel goddamn. this is gay rights!
> 
> once again its late and i dont remember much i did while writing this. i was simply possessed by the twewy hype. what are some key points uh,,, the thing about awakenings? i think its cooler, hotter, and sexier if when they awaken they dont have any weapons or anything just bare hands and rage. also two days finally passed in one chapter! god why am i like this. things will finally speed up jesus christ
> 
> the other dad is here,,,, sojiro why do you take so long to warm up i just want to love you... uh what else. neku's thing about being socially exhausted and his friends saying "dude do what you gotta and leave" is slightly based on a true story. it happens guys. 
> 
> we're gonna skip over the subplot i accidentally started and say heehee hoohoo joshua's here. it may not may not seem like it, but josh is actually less of an asshole because he's kinda in Hey I'm Composer And Actually Have Responsibilities mode. sure he's still condescending, but like, you cant waste time insulting people when you have to get to business. and because i know i'm gonna get asked about it, no, theres not gonna be any romantic josh/neku in this. yes josh will still be as flirty as in canon because i refuse to take that away. 
> 
> here's neku's mask (only half of it bc im lazy)  
> 
> 
> i don't have a drawing of neku's outfit and i dont know how to describe it better than his iconic outfit but instead with dark blue (basically black) pants and a darker purple for his jacket (the white zipper on it replaces the white part in the middle) with sleeves (that he rolls up bc its cooler). sorry i didnt describe it as well in the story, akira wouldn't know how similar it looks to the Iconic Neku LookTM


	12. "Be There"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on TGSH:  
> neku: you ever just encounter something and realize "wow i am Not coping with that as well as i thought i was"  
> the pt: hey uh are you ok???  
> neku: obviously not  
> akira: do you want to talk about it?  
> neku: obviously not
> 
> And now back to low-functioning dead kids and high-functioning thieves:  
> The pace picks up as the Thieves infiltrate Madarame's palace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOTICE! last chapter has been edited as of posting this (2/1/2021) please go read it so you know whats going on. it hasn't been completely changed, i just edited some words, added some jokes and a whole ass scene at the end. it was bothering me and is partially why i took so long lmao
> 
> alright for this chapter! welcome to the end of the beginning! the pace shall pick up from here, thank you so much for sticking with me through my slowly paced mess so far. i've realized that i havent said how much i appreciate all of you, seeing all of your thoughts and things has made me so happy! 
> 
> enjoy!

For the entirety of the first day infiltration with their new teammates, Akira had decided to hang back in a more supportive role. It’s not like he didn’t fight or anything, but he was pretty much using the time to try to evaluate where everyone’s at. 

But as much as it’s his job as a leader to know his teammates strengths and all that, Akira _wants_ to fight. He’s got two new people he can show off in front of, so he decides to take that chance the second day of infiltration.

“So we’re just trying to get that guard in front of that control room, yeah?” Skull says when they get to the furthest safe room. Akira had stopped their infiltration there so they didn’t tire out their new members completely on the first day. Pacing is important.

“Yeah,” He nods, “We should get through this faster from there.” Partly because he’ll be actively participating again. He tries not to get cocky, but he feels much more confident about his skills within the metaverse, especially when he knows he has a team at his back. With luck, they’ll be able to send the calling card tomorrow or so.

They approach the guard. Akira knows that in order to make it through the next half of the infiltration, he’ll need to choose how he uses his energy wisely. Luckily, he’s not the only adaptable one on the team anymore, and he should be alright if he wants to show off just a little in a few fights.

The shadow distorts and grows into a more distinctive shape than the normal guard, and Akira makes sure his team is prepared. The fight starts quickly, with Fox quickly calling out the shadow’s physical immunity. A few close misses from the shadow and Akira quickly starts to get an idea; those physical immunities don’t really mean shit when a shadow is frozen solid.

He relays the command quickly, trusting Ace and Fox to be able to both freeze it and knock it down. They honestly weren’t able to get into the details about how baton passes work, but hopefully the two understood what he meant. (Not that Akira really knows the inner workings of it either. He’s halfway sure that when Mona first described it, he meant a boost in _morale,_ not actual strength. But cognition’s kinda funny like that and he refuses to question it.)

In a show of expertise, Fox draws his katana as soon as the shadow was frozen, slicing through it with a devastating blow. Instead of a normal hold up, though, he gave Panther a baton pass, who made sure to give him an encouraging smile before roasting the shadow alive. When you’re cold and are suddenly put somewhere hot, it feels even hotter than it actually is. So why not dial that up to eleven?

She passes it on to Ace when she can’t hold the spell for longer, stepping back with her gun aimed on the shadow to keep it from getting back up. Like he said he would yesterday, Ace doesn’t even acknowledge it. 

He’s very obviously on board with this plan, surrounding it in flames that burn much brighter than normal until they die out, the paper-like shadow looking pretty burnt there.

“Joker!” It never ceases to amaze how freaking fast Ace is on the battlefield. Akira’s not even sure he saw him come over here. Anyways, high-fives are given and Akira feels the built up boost fueling his next moves. He summons Hua Po.

Normally, an Agi spell would not completely _disintegrate_ the enemy into ashes, especially a stronger one, but damn does it feel good to see all the hard work in building up that baton pass put to good use. He gets why Panther sometimes has that satisfied smile on her face when she burns a shadow to death. It’s still incredibly intimidating, but he gets it. 

“Good job everyone,” Akira says after making sure everyone’s alright. No one has anything more than scrapes, thankfully. If they all keep this up, they’ll be able to keep going for a good while.

They make it into the control room, find out how to disable security, and continue on through the palace. 

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to jumping through paintings,” Panther comments, looking up at the large and different paintings. Akira nods, he can definitely agree. 

Skull glances at her, “I’d be kinda weird if you did.”

“If you did you could probably put it on your resume,” Ace adds, “Become the world’s first Professional Painting Jumper.”

“Thanks,” she shakes her head in amusement, ”but I’ll stick to modeling.” 

Fox suddenly looks interested in the conversation, “Speaking of—”

“Nope!” Mona says very adamantly.

“Alright, that’s enough standing around,” Akira takes his cue to get everyone on track before Mona says anything more, “Let's go jump in some paintings.”

And so they all head deeper into the palace (by jumping through paintings). Akira spies Mona glancing back the further they go, so he follows his gaze to Ace. Right the whole distortion thing. Even Akira’s starting to see more obvious ripples in the walls around them, they’re gonna hit something soon. 

And he’s proven right with the sight of gaudy gold pathways that go nowhere and make up the floor, walls, and ceiling. It hurts to even look at, with how bright it is. No wonder this place isn’t even on their map. 

Ace doesn’t look too worse for wear, but his face is scrunched up like something’s bothering him. Akira asks about it. 

“This place is just causing a headache,” He answers after a moment, “It’d probably be worse if none of you were here.”

“What do you mean?” asks Fox.

“The pact,” he answers, but then seems to realize that doesn’t clear everything up. “I mean it’s with Fox, which is why we’re so in sync, but it partially extended to the rest of you somehow. Otherwise, this place would probably drive me so nuts you wouldn’t even see me.”

“Wouldn’t see you?” Skull repeats. “What’s that mean?”

Ace seems to think for a moment, before he’s gone in a blink of an eye. Akira mostly manages to hide his surprise, but the rest aren’t so quiet in theirs. In another blink, he’s visible again. 

“I tend to accidentally drive myself up to higher frequencies when I’m stressed,” is his explanation for that. Honestly Akira had glossed over the fact that he mentioned being invisible because he assumed it was like the metaverse. 

But this? They could use this for something in the future. 

They move on soon, with Yusuke expertly picking out the correct Sayuri paintings. The world shifts around them in a different way than Kamoshida’s palace, but it still shows as much proof of how far Madarame is from reality. 

Soon enough, they reach it. The treasure. They make their plans on how they’ll grab it when it’s time. 

“What are you looking at, Fox?” Mona asks when he’s staring off at something in the crane’s control room. Akira follows his gaze to the wall, his eyes glowing as he tries to see what’s hidden there. It’s a door that blends almost completely into the wall. Quite unlike the man who tries to make everything grand and gaudy so far. 

“There’s something there?” Akira says, moving to try to find some sort of hidden latch or something. _And… there._ He unlatches it, and swings it open. Everyone leans in to peek inside. 

It’s a small room, with canvases stored in it. Some are blank, some are sketches, some are half-painted. The one that stands out to the thieves, however, is a drawing of Neku.

It’s unfinished, only the painted part moves around like the finished painting-cognitions they saw earlier, the rest is sketched in pencil. 

“What the hell…?” Skull says what they’re all thinking. 

“H-Hold on,” Ace takes a step back, his wings hanging closer to his body in a very guarded manner, “So if those paintings from earlier are supposed to be his pupils…”

“It’s likely that he’s still considering you for a new one,” Mona finishes.

“But he’s planning on suing me?” He shakes his head. “That doesn’t make any sense.”

Akira really doesn’t like what any of this implies. “Maybe he’s planning to offer his… ‘mentorship’ as a way out?”

“Would he do that?” Panther asks.

“I’m coming to believe he would,” Fox says with a deeply troubled look on his face, anger sparking within his gaze. “He’d likely approach with some story about how his security company wants to take action, but Sens— Madarame will say that he’s convinced them not to and he wants Neku to take his offer at being a student. Something that will seem to paint him in a better light, but is despicable blackmail nonetheless.”

There’s a moment where everyone is quiet, still absorbing the information. Akira’s anger simmers, but it threatens to boil over at any moment. But he can’t let it, he’s the _leader._ Besides, if _he’s_ angry at this, then he can just imagine how _pissed_ Fox and Ace are. 

And so Akira doesn’t let his anger boil, but he won’t let what happened to him happen to anyone else. Yusuke will be free from Madarame and Neku will lead a successful un-sabotaged life. Akira will make sure of it without fail. 

Ace moves to the front of the group, actually stepping inside the room proper, something the rest haven’t done. Akira gestures for the rest to fall back a bit, since he has an inkling about what’s about to happen. 

Ace looks up at the canvas and, with almost no movement or hesitation, sets it on fire. Most of the other Phantom Thieves are surprised, but Panther just cheers him on. At that, he turns, almost in consideration, then sets the rest on fire. Akira briefly wonders if he should be concerned that there are two arsonists on the team, but decides it’s better not worry about it. 

Ace turns around, the flames still burning behind him and casting shadows onto his frowning face. With a gesture of his hand, they cut out, leaving behind nothing but ashes and charred canvases. “Guess we should start heading out of here, right?”

Akira nods, a little impressed, before beginning to herd his teammates back to the nearest safe room, announcing that their infiltration is over. 

All they have left is the calling card. 

Neku should’ve expected that they wouldn’t send the calling card right away, judging by how much Akira values giving his teammates rest. It was a bit of a surprise, though, how fast they got through the palace. Looking up at the building from the outside and seeing the complicated twists and turns of the inside, Neku thought he might not be able to help send the calling card before the next Game. 

But the Phantom Thieves, for all they mess around, are surprisingly efficient. Despite this being their second time doing this, Neku thinks that they make it work pretty well. There’s been a lot of stuff he has to adapt to, when it comes to fighting shadows. 

Nevertheless, Neku‘s adjusted like he always does. It’s actually been a while since he’s seriously fought anything more than a random Noise that’s making someone’s day worse. He might be a little out of shape, but that doesn’t matter nearly as much as it would before. 

Neku spends his day off from the palace mentally preparing himself for next week and trying not to think about the painting from the palace. It doesn’t work completely, and he can’t help but think about the possible offer for “mentoring” Madarame might give. 

He’d honestly rather die again than be forced to accept that. 

When they meet to send the calling card the next day, Neku feels more than motivated to take on the palace tomorrow. He’s honestly more concerned about Yusuke, and makes sure to try and catch him after the meeting. 

Neku approaches with purposefully loud steps, prompting Yusuke to look up from where he stands just outside the door of the studio hideout, gazing off of the roof. They’ve all already parted ways for the most part, but Neku let Ryuji know he wants to talk to Yusuke before he needs to be dragged off to help with the calling card. 

“You ready for tomorrow?” Neku starts with. 

Yusuke’s brow doesn’t furrow further, but his face is still troubled as he answers. “I’m about as ready as I can be at the moment.”

“Same here.” Neku leans against the wall, “All of this seems kinda crazy, doesn’t it? Stealing hearts with the Phantom Thieves.” 

“It certainly isn’t what I expected when we began our project,” Yusuke agrees. He glances to Neku, “Though I cannot say that I expected you to sprout wings, either.”

Neku grimaces just a bit. He and his friends haven’t been leaving him out of things on purpose, but sometimes they needed space to talk about the Game. “I was planning on telling you about that sometime during the school year,” Or as much as _he_ could explain. He’d need to leave the rest up to the others. “But then this happened.”

“I see,” Yusuke says, the look on his face is more thoughtful. “If I am being honest, I don’t think I could ever be fully ready to rebel against my mentor. There’s a part of me that still feels indebted to him.” 

Neku glances at him, but he stays silent and lets Yusuke continue. 

“He did raise me, after all,” He says, “I used to feel that nothing could change that fact. Not even how he treated other pupils. It feels selfish, to go against all of that now.”

“Then be selfish,” Neku says, crossing his arms. “The whole thing that wanting things to be better for yourself is ‘selfish’ is stupid.”

Yusuke sighs, “If only it were that simple.”

“If only,” Neku agrees. It never is that easy, but it doesn’t hurt to plant the idea. “The feeling of owing it to him, it takes a while to go away. Especially since you still live with him. So, focus on something else. Get angry, get _pissed._ It makes the doubt not really matter.”

Yusuke glances at him, “You have a point. I find myself thinking back to my awakening often, and it takes all my self-restraint not to go into Sensei’s room right then and there demanding answers.”

Neku nods, he can understand the feeling. “Then that’s what you’ll need for tomorrow.” He pauses, then smiles a bit. _“And_ so you can roast him to hell and back when you work on the calling card.”

Yusuke laughs a little, “I will make sure the work of Ryuji and I live up to your expectations.” He starts moving away from the hideout, “Are you certain you don’t want to help?”

Neku shakes his head. He still has to prepare for the next Reaper’s Game. It’s not too much work, but UG stuff tends to tire him out fast. “I can't, sorry.” 

“It’s alright,” Yusuke says, pausing in his parting ways. “And thank you, Neku. I’m very grateful you became my friend.” 

Neku nods, a little overwhelmed at the sincerity in the statement. Yusuke never does anything in halves, does he? “…I’m glad too.” 

They both part ways, and tomorrow they might finally be ready. 

Neku is just a little nervous about this whole thing. See, when Morgana said they’d only have one day to do this, his traitor brain said 24 hours and started ticking down. Timers make him more than a little nervous, even fake ones in his mind. Can you blame him? 

But other than that he has confidence that they can pull this off. The Phantom Thieves have done this before, and Neku’s probably done more difficult things in his life. Probably.

The plan goes like this. Morgana, Ryuji, and Ann are all going to the security room to control the lights. If something goes wrong, having three of them will be useful. Yusuke, Neku, and Akira are staying back at the crane. Neku’ll land on the other side of the lasers, invisible, and put the treasure on the crane to pull it up with the lights off. 

Neku _would_ just pick up the treasure and fly up, but he’s, uh, still not very good at it. He’d end up making more of a commotion if he did that. 

The plan’s going well so far. Just crouching on the rafters above the cloth-covered treasure is giving him a headache, so he doubts it’ll be any difficult to stay at higher frequencies here. 

Yusuke stands tall next to him, looking at him with concern. “Are you sure you’ll be alright? We could always go for the Mona plan.”

Neku rolls his eyes a little. “It’s just a headache. I’ll be fine, Fox.”

Akira comes up onto the rafters, checking in. “Ready?” 

They both nod. Neku gives a peace sign and vanishes, hopping down behind the lasers as he sees Ann in the security room. 

The lights go off and everything goes as planned. The painting hangs suspended above its previous place, just out of sight as the lights turn back on. Great, great. Now Neku just needs to make his own way out without touching the freaking lasers and everything’s fine. 

Making sure there’s enough room, he gives a cautious flap of his wings. He can’t fly, but he should be able to launch himself back up to the rafters with hopefully only _some_ difficulty. Taking a step, Neku leaps. For a moment, he thinks he might not make it, but his reaching hands hold onto the planks with only a lot of strain. Damn he really has no upper body strength, does he? He really needs to work on that. _Beat’s been wanting someone to work out with for a while, I could ask._

“A little help?” he asks, making himself visible to the others.

Ryuji pulls him up just as Ann points out a window they can escape from. With the sound of approaching guards, they take the option, leaving Neku with little time to question why Morgana is carrying the treasure. 

In all honesty, Neku should’ve realized the “treasure” was fake, since his headache didn’t increase into a migraine the closer he got to it. Now that it’s actually so close by, Neku can barely even keep an eye on Yusuke throughout the encounter. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t paying attention, especially when Madarame digs himself deeper and deeper into a hole.

It just gets worse as it goes on. The bragging about using Yusuke’s mother, calling her and her work his own. It all gives Neku a rotten feeling. And it’s just as well that the piece of shit stole his most famous work as well. But then Madarame unveils the true Sayuri— if that even is the true name— and Neku’s vision tunnels in on it. 

Neku stares, the beautiful image of the mother and her child draws up an almost familiar feeling. It’s a feeling that tells him that everything that painting is and represents is important, that to Madarame, it’s his _most valued._ It’s so familiar that Neku wants to pull back from it, knowing exactly what it means.

“An entry fee,” he murmurs under his breath, everyone else so focused on several of Madarame’s other misdeeds to even notice him. _Even without him being a Player, I can tell. His treasure would be his entry fee._

Is that what a treasure truly is? It makes sense. What someone values most would obviously be the source of their desires being so twisted, it would be what’s protected at the center of the palace. _But that means…_ With Neku’s position and his abilities as Conductor, he could just _take it_ and save the Phantom Thieves time. It would be so easy, he has to do it regularly with the Players—

 _What? Wait a fucking second._ No matter how much of an asshole, Madarame is an _alive_ asshole. That means it’s too dangerous for Neku to even try. Not to mention that he _hates_ taking entry fees anyways. What was that about…?

He shakes his head just as Ann is spitting insults at Shadow Madarame. “I can’t believe you’re treating both mother and son like their objects… You’re inhuman!”

Neku, who feels hyper aware of every little thing thanks to the treasure’s presence, feels something shift within his pact, making him look to Yusuke. “Fox?” he asks, hoping his voice carries the rest of his concern. 

“I heard that you destroy your ‘art’ once they outlive their usefulness…” Yusuke says, his glare at Madarame reaching even through his mask. Neku suddenly feels colder. “Did that include my mother as well?”

Why does Neku feel like he already knows the answer to this? 

The shadow has the gall to look smug as he answers, “She just happened to have a seizure in front of me. That’s when a thought crossed my mind; If I don’t call for help and leave her there, I could obtain her painting with no strings attached.” 

Letting her die…? Just the thought pisses him off. “The hell…?!” 

What kind of person would just leave someone there to die? All for a painting? All for fame? Maybe Neku’s a hypocrite. After all, he’s in charge of Reapers who erase Players and he still interacts with Joshua on (relatively) friendly terms despite the whole murder thing. But lives aren’t something that can just be thrown away, especially for deplorable reasons like that. It’s disgusting to just think about. 

Neku steps closer to Yusuke in support, stopping at his friend’s dark chuckle. “I thank you, Madarame… My anger now leaves no room for doubt. Every reason for me to forgive you has disappeared without a trace at this very moment!

“You call yourself an artist, and you wear the rotten skin of one well. But you are truly a despicable fiend who uses others for your own wretched desires… You aren’t even worth the art you claim to ‘create!’”

With that declaration, Neku finds that Yusuke took his advice from yesterday. When Shadow Madarame transforms into… whatever _that_ is, anger colors his form, ready to battle his former mentor without restraint. 

And Neku has no plans of leaving his side. The pact means they’re partners now, right? It’d be stupid to leave now. 

Akira directs them through the fight as always, calling out what does and doesn’t work on the weird monster paintings. Neku’s still getting used to working on a team under a leader, but he does his best with what he has. 

They’re soon able to knock down all the paintings, getting Shadow Madarame into a hold up. Neku still feels… _uncomfortable_ around the guns. But he still participates, charging energy into his left hand and holding it there with the threat of releasing it. 

Madarame spits out insults as usual, unable to do anything more when trapped in a corner. Then Akira calls for an all-out attack. All-out attacks feel just like fusion attacks, but with more people and less dropping moons. Being able to attack an enemy and move, knowing that someone else will take your place? It’s like synching but with more people, and it’s kinda cool.

What’s not cool is that Madarame is still standing, and that he’s returning to that disgusting painting monster thing again. That’s a pain in the ass.

Neku’s pretty good at not getting hit, for the most part. “Blocking” is not really part of his moveset, and his best strategy is simply “don’t be there when they attack.” So he feels like he’s pretty good at that. 

But it’s not that he never gets hit. Now, being in his position has its perks, which is basically that he’s very hard to kill. Unfortunately that doesn’t mean that getting knocked over doesn’t hurt, it just hurts a bit less.

Ann helps him back up, “I think he hit you with some weird ink attack. Be careful, Ace.”

When he looks down, he sees what she means. Black ink covers his left arm and his front, and Neku gets a bad feeling about this. The air bites a little colder than usual and he feels uncomfortable in his skin, what did that attack do?

Ann stays nearby, but she’s not the only one. Apparently his epic fail of a dodge was seen by everyone, and they stay close as they fire spells at Madarame. Neku doesn’t waste time getting back to the battle, but one of the eye paintings seems to have it out for him. 

He moves out of the way of some ice spell, his annoyance getting the better of him as he charges up one of his pins. “What the hell do you want—!?” 

He’s cut off as electricity courses through his body, locking his joints up as he drops like a sack of flour. For a moment it hurts so much he feels like he can’t breathe, but the spell soon leaves and he’s left on the ground wondering why the fuck that hurt so much. 

“Shit,” he gasps, “That… hurt a lot more… than I was expecting.” 

Yusuke’s voice comes from the other direction, “We need to finish this quickly!”

Even closer nearby is Morgana, who quickly heals him, “You okay?”

Neku exhales as he sits up, feeling a little better. “Now I know what a fork in a microwave feels like.”

“I think that ink makes you weaker to his attacks, so stay back for a bit until it wears off,” he tells him. 

Neku begrudgingly backs off enough that the rest don’t have to hover, but if he drops a couple of meteors on the paintings from far away that’s his business. 

Madarame falls. His previous gloating is replaced with fear. Neku watches Yusuke confront his mentor, feeling his friend’s cold anger even from where he stands. 

“Return to yourself in reality and confess every last one of your crimes,” He says, his voice leaving no room for argument. “Swear it!”

“You’re not going to kill me…?” Madarame shrinks away from Yusuke’s glare, “I-I swear it, alright!” 

When the palace eventually begins to crumble and the others wait in Mona’s car form (and isn’t that a sight. They’ve mentioned it once or twice, but seeing the cat turn into a van with his own eyes is… something), Neku waits for Yusuke outside it. 

Yusuke walks away from Madarame, his knuckles pale as he holds the Sayuri. Neku can’t help but feel bad for him. “Yusuke?” He asks as they both climb into the back of the car. The palace shakes more, and Neku has to change his focus to holding on as Akira drives them haphazardly through it.

 _“The destination has been deleted.”_

When they’re out of the palace and talking on the walkway, Yusuke seems much more relaxed. He talks openly about his relief that his mother would never have to know of the horrible things Madarame has done. 

Neku can’t help but agree with Ann, the painting is beautiful. 

“So what are you gonna do now?” Ryuji eventually asks. The Phantom Thieves… they want to inspire courage and help others. To try and get back at society… 

Yusuke has a clear answer by the time Neku’s just starting to form one. Neku isn’t… He isn’t the same as the rest of them. He doesn’t have a persona, he doesn’t have a great injustice that was committed against him (excluding his death). Sure, he used to be a self-imposed outcast, but that hardly counts since he was just an asshole. He’s not sure if he even fits in with them.

“Neku?” Ann asks, they’re waiting for his answer.

But does any of that matter? If he wants to help, then he should help. It could be that simple. 

“Alright, sure. I want to see where this goes.” Neku crosses his arms, “I’m in.”

Neku receives a text before he goes to sleep that night. 

**_1 new message from Almost-Blocked Number_ **

_I take it the palace has fallen?_

He feels too tired to respond, but he does it anyways.

_how did you know?_

_It was quite the disturbance._

_like how you are to my sleep schedule rn?_

_Poor Neku._

_How will I ever find it in me to care?_

_i was planning on telling you some info_

_but since you dont care i guess it can wait until tomorrow_

_That depends on how important it is._

_there’s someone else using the metaverse_

_according to madarame’s shadow, they have a black mask_

_Hm._

_Anything else?_

_uh_

_i guess madarame looked scared when he talked about it_

_like this person was going to kill him_

_Well._

_Looks like the guard dog might bite early._

Neku actually wakes up a bit at that. 

_you know something_

_Of course I do, what do you take me for?_

_tell me_

_I don’t have anything solid._

_But I can only suspect he might be behind some of the incidents lately._

_The ones that have been causing things to become busy within the UG._

Neku doesn’t ignore the use of “he” in that message. Joshua already knows who this is. 

_shit. i need to warn the rest_

_Not yet. There isn’t enough evidence to be certain._

_is that really the only reason i shouldn’t warn them about some killer?_

_Aw how sweet💕_

_And they say there’s no honor among thieves._

_Joshua._

_stop dodging the question_

_I’ll tell you when I find more, worry about the Game next week instead._

_For now I suppose there’s some detective work to be done until then._

_i’m holding you to that_

_and dont think that i wont bother you all next week about it too_

_Fantastic. I can’t wait._

The conversation stalls and Neku shuts off his phone, knowing that there’s something that Joshua is lying to him about. Whatever. It’s not like he hasn’t lied to him about things before. He’s tired anyways, so it’s better to think about that some other time. No need to dwell on things.

Despite the long difficult day, Neku barely gets any sleep when he closes his eyes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so uhh yeah i just put the entire palace into one chapter lmao. god i thought i was gonna make shorter chapters not longer ones
> 
> game mechanics shmame mechanics i do whatever the fuck i want. baton passes are just an excuse to be good friends but someone fucked up and added superpowers. also arson is fun. i love writing chatty akira. sometimes i'll need someone to ask a meaningless question and then im like "wait a second akira's in the metaverse he can do it"
> 
> what else... hinting at stuff here... establishing other things there... i like writing the differences between akira and neku's povs, especially because those are the only two povs im writing for this. also. neku! and! yusuke! are! friends! and i am so happy i wrote that. i cant wait until i get to expand on that and how neku interacts with the rest of the PT. 
> 
> oh and i'm starting to realize much of josh's appearance in this fic is going to be through text oops. i cant help it, he's already hinted so much just through that alone, imagine the disaster if he talked to neku in person about this stuff and was revealing relevant plot points too early. cant have shit in detroit.
> 
> anyways i think thats it. have a nice day everyone!

**Author's Note:**

> let me know what you think and all that jazz.
> 
> you can find me usually on [tumblr](https://ha-youwish.tumblr.com/) (but im also on [twitter](https://twitter.com/ha_youwish) if you would like to see my garbage opinions/maybe see sneak peeks or stuff u might’ve missed while reading owo)
> 
> Edit 2: please keep in mind that this story only follows the events of the og p5, so any question about p5r and if this and that will happen in this fic aren’t very necessary. have a good day!


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